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Protein intake and PCA risks

45RPM profile image
6 Replies

Hello i am 61 yo, 18 months out from cyberknife and wanted to start working out, lifting weights to get back some tone and maybe even grow muscle. I was starting to take in more protein with shakes, chicken, beans...., but then it dawned on me that maybe protein may be an issue for PCA? What is the latest on protein intake and PCA - should i be limiting intake, can it lead to increase PSA, could it increase risk for recurrence of the PCA?

Thanks for any help, 45rpm

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45RPM
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6 Replies
Tall_Allen profile image
Tall_Allen

Nothing in your diet does harm.

allie2020 profile image
allie2020

I had RP four years ago, doing very well and all undetectable uPSA's. I follow the information about diet/nutrition pretty closely and have never heard anything suggesting a connection between protein and PCa. I eat a lot of salmon, a fair amount of organic chicken breasts and drink Orgain organic protein shakes. Good luck with your working out! I really believe that regular, fairly strenuous exercise is imperative for good health as we age.

London441 profile image
London441

Eat the protein, it’s good for you.

You say you want to ‘start working out’. Have you not before? At 61 I hope that’s not the case but it’s great, far more important than considerations of protein intake.

Working out will lead you to eating more protein anyway, it’s unlikely you’ll have to think about it.

dentaltwin profile image
dentaltwin

What I'm reading is that as we get older our protein absorption gets less efficient, so we need more (about 100 grams for an average-sized man). Many of us get that much, but it's often back-loaded with dinner. There is a limit to how much protein you can absorb at one sitting, so it should be broken up during the day. Also, if you have any kidney issues you should speak to your doctor to be sure supplementation is safe.

MrG68 profile image
MrG68

Well, here’s my take on that.First I’d say that the following points are reasonable:-> your immune system fights cancer. Everyone has some form of cancer cells and your immune system kills them when it sees it.

-> your diet affects your immune system.

So they don’t think it’s a far stretch to say that your diet has an effect on your cancer. Others may disagree, but I believe in diet matters.

Personally, I tried a keto style diet where it consisted of very low carbs and high fats and high protein. My psa went up at an exponential rate over a 2 month period.

I decided to try out a more plant based diet with fish and it came back down again. I also put in extra exercise. It should be noted that I also did some water fasting on the keto diet as well. So that’s also a factor.

Regardless if you think that’s a reasonable or not, what I would do in your situation, would be to arrange to have monthly / bi monthly series of psas. I’d do your regime without protein supplements. Once I got a couple of psa results, I’d then gradually add protein. I’d do this because supplementation can significantly increase your protein. Protein can also be used to create glucose. This is why keto participants limit their protein.

Obviously you’ll need to discus that with your medical team first to see their opinion.

Or you can just do it blind and hope your psa doesn’t go up.

Please note that I believe that everyone has different body types and different environments. They will react differently.

Shooter1 profile image
Shooter1

Eat up and push up/pull up. All good.

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