Lupron + Prednisone = ^^Hot Flashes

Day 12 on "therapeutic dose" of daily prednisone for another medical condition, and right now RL=EB (RobLee==Energizer Bunny). I've been up since 6AM... I'm retired and usually sleep in til at least 7

The past week.. afternoons and evenings, have been awful regarding hot flashes. Previously I thought I'd had this under control with venlafaxine and gabapentin, but now I spend most every day dripping wet. My wife, who is athletic and is usually the one who runs hot, accuses me of keeping our place like a meat locker.

Yes, it is after all July in Florida. And yes, we did endure a few days of 90+ heat without A/C last year following hurricane Irma. But this just seems to be so unusual. It makes me think of the N1 and M1 guys here who as I recall take prednisone as part of their HT (fortunately I didn't require that, so correct me if I'm wrong... I think it's Zytiga or something, administered concomitant with prednisone?)

Wondering if any of you guys have observed BRUTAL hot flashes as a result.

Of course, I realize that the dosage may be different. My wife took 100mg prednisone daily following each of her chemo infusions last year and says she "doesn't remember it doing that to her." So I asked, were you on Lupron at the time? No? So our situations are different. (It does make a difference after all...)

But I remember she was like a dynamo for a few days after each infusion. And I feel like this is just getting started. It began with notable "edginess" before dinner this past week, following the second dose of the day. I take it early so it won't keep me awake at night. But now the days are seeming to start earlier and earlier.

At least I left the vacuum cleaner in the closet this morning. I might try an Ativan along with my 2AM pee to see if it lets me sleep in a bit longer.

Try estrogen or Megace patches (with tamoxifen). Also, acupuncture works well in randomized clinical trials.

I don't have soaking hot flashes, so maybe mine are warm flashes. Luckily mine pass in a few minutes. I was told to try Vitamin E and then add magnesium if that doesn't help. Both had a temporary placebo helpfulness (I thought it was working). The nurse who gave me my last Lupron injection suggested soy milk. I'm giving that a try but remain skeptical. I have so much medicine in me I hate the idea of more meds. And since mine are only warm flashes I can live with what I have for now. Why doesn't Handel's ice cream work on hot flashes? Dang.

RobLee,

I'm on Day-4 of my first Lupron injection and haven't yet had any notable side effects above and beyond those typically associated with the Casodex, including any hot flashes, so I can't really speak to that issue, but I've got a fair bit of experience with prednisone and methylprednisolone. Both of those induce significant insomnia for me personally, particularly the former of the two, and especially so at 60mg daily. I found that I had to take it almost immediately upon waking in the morning, or I'd be up all night from it. The other concern(s) I'd have with long-term, daily use of prednisone at such a relatively high dosage, would be weight gain and diminished bone density, but I have to imagine that your doctor is well aware of those effects.