Change to Elegard???

Hubby had his PSA draw and was to get his Lupron shot yesterday. Instead they told him they 'switched brands' and gave him a shot of Elegard. Is it really a brand change or is the doc/nurse not telling us quite the truth? Hubby's PSA was up a notch back in Dec. and doc said he wanted to 'wait and watch' through the April and August checks to see if it continued up. (Hubby is just over 3 years post surgery and has been on Lupron since Jan. immediately after his surgery when PSA did not drop enough)
Hubby is worried (scared- but won't say it) because he's read that 3 years is when a lot of guys develop 'castration resistance' (he's a Gleason 9 by the way).

Just wondering if this is really just a 'brand' change- or if doc is checking for resistance without wanting to really tell us.

Thanks for any input.

I was somewhat concerned when I switched the opposite way, from Eligard initially to Lupron. I had very few or mild side effects and wanted to stay that way. Despite the switch, I have done fine on both, although I may now be starting to fail on the first line drug. The injection site is different, but I never did find any evidence to continue worrying about the differnces in effectiveness or side effects.

These brand names are identical except for the timed release mechanism they employ..When doctors or treatment centers switch it's usually because of profit margins associated with a particular brand of drug. Lots of back stage wheeling and dealing being done here....Is the shot being administered by a urologist or a medical oncologist? If it's the former, it's time to consult with the later...

Hello Everyone,
I haven't posted in a long while but I have to chime in on this topic. My husband is also a G-9 and last July started on 50 mg Casodex and Lupron every three months (being treated at MSKCC). We spend winters in Florida & his oncologist suggested that we contact a local urologist that would administer his January injection. The Florida urologist wanted an initial consult before agreeing, so we met with him for over an hour in December at which time we gave him all current records explaining current treatment & agreed that we would return in January for his 3-month Lupron injection (no indication at this time that there would be any problem). When we arrived in January, the nurse came in and he received the injection (in the buttocks as usual). He immediately had an extreme burning at the site, I felt panicky & asked the nurse to confirm that he received the 3-month Lupron. She told us that was correct & that it sometimes burned "the first time". We indicated that it was not the first time. We left & within the hour he was not able to stand up without feeling as though he was going to fall over. I called & was told that he should take it easy & to call if it became any worse. He was ok the next day, so we assumed that the effects of Lupron may change as time goes on. Since this time my husband has experienced many headaches & more bone pain than he had previously. When we returned for a consult prior to our return home, the P.A. came in to go over things & mentioned that he would be due for his next 4-month ELIGARD in May - we told her no, he is scheduled for his next 3-month Lupron in April when we get back to N.Y. She excused herself. We were very upset to say the least. Doctor comes in & in a very dismissive tone, begins to explain that it's the same thing & that now he doesn't have to have another injection until May, as though that is a big bonus. I told him that I knew the active ingredient was the same, but the formula is different. He then went on to explain that in Florida, the reimbursement is so much better with Eligard than with Lupron - yes, he actually said that to us. I told him that I wasn't the least bit interested in his profit margins & that he had an obligation to tell us that he was changing the treatment. That's when he remarked that he could have just given us the prescription, we could have had it filled to the tune of between $3,000. and $4,000. & his office would have administered it, though most people don't want to put out that kind of money. I told him that should have been our choice. (We could easily have gone back to N.Y. for the treatment). So he changed my husband's treatment without advising him or obtaining his consent. In addition, I now learn that Eligard is supposed to be administered in the stomach, which is not the way he received it. When we spoke with his oncologist, he verified that the active ingredient was the same, but he doesn't know that it was not administered properly because I have just learned this. Has this happened to anyone else & what was the outcome?

Lupron Depot is supposed to be administered intramuscularly into the gluteal area (buttocks), anterior thigh, or deltoid. And injections should be rotated (left, right etc)

The (skillful) nurse that injected me used the thigh, and apart from a brief sensation (a few hours), there were no side effects from the injection itself. She also told me that many of her patients changed from Eligard (in the tummy) to Lupron Depot (in the thigh) because the Lupron injections caused fewer injection site 'problems'. Of course, this is not a double blind study, but I thought it might be useful to mention her findings.

Post Edited (Sr Sailor) : 5/1/2016 1:57:12 PM (GMT-6)

I have been on Lupron (IM) injections for six 3-month cycles following chemo with taxotere. I have tolerated the Lupron very well with only some hot flashes and some muscle atrophy. It has maintained my PSA at 0.04. Today, my oncologist wanted to change me over to Eligard and said it was due to a national shortage of Lupron. I refused to change since the results of Lupron have been so good, so I did get another injection of Lupron. Later I verified online with the FDA Drug Shortages website, a shortage was reported on 12/10/2019 but a revised posting 12/17/2019 show all versions of Lupron available. There is no generic for Lupron. Both Eligard and Lupron have the same active ingredient, however they work differently which is why they are administered differently. Most people tolerate intramuscular injections (IM) with fewer side effects than subcutaneous (SQ) and the (IM) absorbs faster. The cost of Eligard is about 2/3 of what Lupron costs. Some of the oncology nurses told me the oncologists are trying to change patients over to Eligard. There is only one reason ... MONEY! Tony Crispino and Fairwind hit the nail on the head. The corporate types at the pharmacies are trying to squeeze a little more profit out of our treatments. If you are getting good results on Lupron, don't let them change you to Eligard. (Medicare has been paying for my Lupron) And note, my caregiver & wife is a Registered Nurse.

I was on Eligard for 18 months, 6 Month shot's, Always in my left upper arm, It left a small pea size lump that slowly went away over the 6 months....

I hate Eligard! It is still given as an injection, but it goes into different tissue.
I've had two shots of it and many many of Lupron.
Eligard stings like a MF'r, Lupron doesn't.

Post Edited (alephnull) : 1/8/2020 8:07:31 AM (GMT-7)

I've just started on ADT and had my first 3 month shot in December. My MO went with Eligard and when asked about Lupron said they were about the same. Shot to the right upper arm and hurt like a mother...ended up with a golf ball sized lump for a while and it took about a week to heal up and return to normal. Did its job though and T is <3 ; PSA is <0.1