Prolonged Fasting to reduce prostate cancer and vitamin B12's effect on raising PSA.

[circosnine]

My PSA had held steady at 4 for many years prior but when Covid struck I stopped exercising and gained 40 lbs. It was at this point that my PSA jumped to 5.1 then 7 and I got a 3t MRI and subsequent 16 core targeted biopsy. I was diagnosed with prostate cancer (Group 3, Unfavorable Intermediate Risk, 4+3, high volume on left side) this past year so I was trying to be careful but after trying prolonged fasting (3, 2 and 1 day water fasts) for a few months my lesion reduced in size by 50% according to my second 3T MRI and my PSA went down from 7 to 5.8. Some people believe prostate cancer is a metabolic related disease which seems to be true in my case. My best friend also had success with prolonged fasting of 14 days to reduce her thyroid tumor by 50% but eventually had surgery as she could not keep up with the fasting for more than a few years.

I had read a few negative articles about taking folate or B12 and its effect on PSA and cancer so I resisted it when my Endocrinologist DO recommended it for my autoimmune and thyroid issues. It seems to be a common practice to give B12 shots and mega doses (5 mg/day) of these vitamins for patients with those disorders. So I though I would try the mega doses of B12 for a bit to improve my autoimmune and thyroid issues since my PSA and cancer volume had reduced. After a few months I took a new PSA test and was alarmed it had risen to 8. Stopped the B12 immediately and luckily it returned to a lower level of 6.45. No doctor ever discussed this relationship between B12 and PSA. You do hear about Biotin reducing the ability to accurately detect PSA in blood but not anything about B12 unfortunately. Other articles go on to explain B12 and Folate might not just raise PSA but also increase chance of tumor growth.

[Tall_Allen]

Sadly, PSA fluctuates and MRIs can only reveal suspicion of cancer. Neither tells you anything about the cancer itself. That's why biopsies are required. Unfavorable intermediate risk PCa won't go away through fasting or any other secondary intervention. It is a dangerous disease and you need treatment.

IMO, gay men should never have prostatectomies.:

prostatecancer.news/2021/12...

SBRT or high-dose-rate brachytherapy monotherapy have over 90% cure rates and have minimal (but not zero) side effects compared to other treatments.

[circosnine in reply to Tall_Allen]

Thanks for the response. Yes, I am planning on getting Viewray MRIdian 5 treatments of SBRT with boost at lesions and Spaceoar at Sylvester Cancer Center in Miami with Dr. Alan Pollack. I have a follow up meeting with him in a week or so. He would rather I did the 28 treatments of IMRT and Lupron though as he believes I have possible EPE. John Hopkins Hospital and Advent Hospital (second opinions) disagree.

I will also decline the hormone therapy as my PSMA pet scan was negative outside of prostate and I have had low testosterone most of my life thus reducing chances of ADT success and increasing chances of long term side effects instead. I know Orgovyx is helpful in that regard but hoping to avoid it now as I am a caretaker for both my elderly parents and cannot deal with more fatigue or emotional distress the hormone treatment would cause.

I understand also that my Prostox (Miradx) test says I am likely to get late GU side effects from RT so I am hoping the greater precision of the Viewray and smaller margins will reduce the overall toxicity of the treatments and thus reduce likelihood of late GU side effects. I read boosts at lesions are more successful at reducing recurrence rates than ADT. Of course that is dependent on if the recurrence is beyond the prostate or not.

[NYC_talker]

I had the opposite experience. I have been physically fit, working out every day (either running or weights) for much of my life . And that was even more so true in the pandemic, as I went the opposite of most people and got more lean and built up.

And what happened? I was diagnosed with PCa after seeing my PSA rise and getting a biopsy. (Have since been treated, as you can see in my posts.)

The moral of this story: Any of us can get prostate cancer at any time after a certain age, and we're too often looking for the "why me?" answer and then thinking there's some way we can cure it by some lifestyle change. And it's just not true. You did nothing to get it. And treatment is important. Glad to see you're getting it.

[circosnine in reply to NYC_talker]

Thanks for your reply. My father and brother both have had prostate cancer so I think it was more likely for me to get it too. I am luckily negative for BRCA 1 and 2 though as I believe many who are might get more aggressive disease. Everyone is different but I believe lifestyle changes have affected me for the better and worse. I have seen on PCRI that studies indicate lifestyle does not prevent you from getting PC but can markedly improve the outcome by 80% increased survivorship. In my case I think I accelerated the growth by recent bad diet and lifestyle. Seems like a lot of extra supplementation with certain vitamins can also make it worse. I have avoided vitamin E, Fish Oil, Iron (metals) and now b12 and Folate. I probably had this for a decade or more but may have just sped it forward. Also read that random autopsies on men indicate a 40% chance of PC cells in 40 years old men, 50% chance in 50 year old, and so on. I was diagnosed at age 60 and have been researching and meeting with a variety of doctors and getting second and third opinions in the past year. I also read studies indicate a year of doing this does not affect the outcome. Treatment is important but I believe getting the right one with the right doctor is critical. My insurance unfortunately give s me less options than I would prefer. I have had to pay for a lot out of pocket so far such as the PSMA pet scan which is not approved for initial diagnosis and providers outside of my area are not covered.

[Bubba101]

How much was the PSMA Pet Scan? I was just quote $6K