I am ending ADT at 1 year. As of today my Testosterone is <0.01. It was 4.3 mg/mL before my first shot.
Is there any data on how long it will take a 61 YO to start to see some T come back?
Anyone here of a similar age and duration have any words or wisdom on what to expect?
My next test will be end of March and I am hoping for some movement!
I was 62 when I stopped adt after 1 year. Took about 5 months for T to fully recover. But after about 2-3 months my adt side effects (hot flashes, lethargy) diminished. Obviously it varies a lot between people. I would also recommend some form of penal rehab
I‘m ending now, too, after two years. Let’s see how we do.
Your level at diagnosis, age and duration of ADT are considered the 3 metrics that determine T recovery.
‘Age’ is an unreliable marker. Biological age matters more than chronological. Your overall health, and especially your strength and cardiovascular fitness. How much do you exercise and what kind?
I do a lot of cardio. Skiing uphill mostly - resting pulse is around 50. I’ve also been lifting for upper body 3x a week since on ADT.
Great! It enhances T recovery. I was on ADT for a year. Informally I think of it as 18 months as I remained at castrate level for an additional 6. Just after that it rose quickly.
Are you stopping at as prescribed or by your choice?
My choice after some homework. See my response to Turkey Joe.
This varies, but averages about 5 months.
You're likely to experience some relief from the SEs in about 3 months. One day I woke up and felt like a human being again; it was a miracle.
Hot flashes were the most tenacious for me; I was still having them a year after I quit (at age 60).
Best of luck to you.
We are very similar in Dx and treatments. Numbers are even the same. I am 17 months on lupron now. Next month I will be due for my final 6 month shot. What made you to decide going off the 24 month SOC lupron treatments?
Personal decision. I am aware that the current guidelines and SOC are set at 24 months for high risk. However I also made note of the fact in 2023 Dr. Scholz at PCRI is starting to question that given the recent advent and use of the PSMA-PET. When I discussed with my RO he was fine at 1 year vs. 2 so long as it was my choice.
My feeling is that you certainly may get some added benefit from the additional year of ADT but in return you also get another year of unknown damage that comes with having no testosterone. I am comfortable with the trade and want my life back.
Not so different than myself. I was slated for 2 years as part of a clinical trial in 2019. Lesser Gleason but with adverse features. I was asked by RO how I was doing after completing IMRT and approaching a year of Lupron. My side effects were mild other than some expected fat gain, muscle and endurance loss, slight brain fog and zero libido.
When I told him my symptoms (without complaint or any request/insistence to cut it short) he recommended I stop. MO agreed. I sought a 2nd opinion who referred to my situation as a ‘data free zone’ and said it was my choice.
I am now nearing 3 years post full return of T with no evidence of disease. If I have a recurrence I’ll have no way of knowing if the 2 years would have eradicated it but in the meantime I am doing well at 68.
ADT of 12 vs 24, 36 months etc continues to be a somewhat ‘data free zone’ still. Certainly doctors have become more sympathetic with patients’ experience with T suppression.
We know that shortening the ADT course is equivalent to rolling the dice. A personal decision if ever there was one. Having now enjoyed good health and undetectable PSA 4 1/2 years since initial treatment I am of course a fan of it. We’ll see if it lasts. Great luck to you!
Thank you for the feedback. I was thinking the same thing at 18 months. It's a scary decision for me. TA says you can blow your only chance at a cure. I have a month to decide. A friend of mine only did radiation. Nothing else. No lupron, nothing. He doing well 4 years later. Not sure of his Gleason. PSA started at 29. .47 now
Also high risk, 42 sessions if IMRT and two years of Lupron. Have been off for almost 3 years now. Testosterone gradually climbed back to normal, took about 9 months. Side effects of ADT lessened at about the same time. ADT really sucks, no doubt t, but I hung in for the entire 24 months because that was the advice to the MO and RO I was seeing. Even sought second opinion from a new MO and was told the same, I assume because I was considered High Risk. I get PSA tested every 6 months, still undetectable. Really struggled with the decision to stay on that nasty drug for the duration but glad I did. Tough choice I know. Good luck.
At 66 yo I stopped 18 months of ADT in March 2023. Took until June to get into the normal range, by August was back near where I started. Hot flashes stopped after about 2 months.
Here's some info from Memorial Sloan Kettering.
mskcc.org/clinical-updates/...
If you just finished the last injection it could take up to six months before you see anything. If you are in the 7-8% group that don't recover fully after 2 years or so, replacement therapy is available. There are many factors involved, in my case it went very slowly up to about 16 months and then shot up to 550 so don't get discouraged too quickly.
What is 4.3 mg/mL in ng/dL, that's how they measure mine.
Or did you mean ng/mL?
Sorry yes ng. Damn auto correct.
So thats 430 in my ng/dL world?
And <0.01 ro you is <0.1 to me.
Mine was pretty much the same. I'll let you know next year, when I drop ADT!!!
I had 13 months of ADT. Three months after the last Eligard shot should have worn off my T was 563 ng/dL. And I was a few years older than you at the time. 🦊
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