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Post-treatment testosterone

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Posted 11/14/2012 5:13 AM (GMT 0)
Ever since I was first diagnosed with PCa a year ago, I've read and heard that prostate cancer survivors shouldn't look to increase their T level. However, someone at a recent UsToo meeting I attended said that thinking is now being pushed aside and a recent thread here seems to indicate the same. Does anyone have links to recent studies that confirm this?

Also, I did HDR brachy early this year, not RP. My PSA level is dropping but not gone, and some of my prostate still exists, I guess. Does the new thinking about increasing T levels being ok for PCa survivors apply to men who chose radiation instead of RP?

I searched the past 12 pages but can't find anything more on this topic. If it's already been discussed, I'd appreciate a link to the thread.

Thanks, all.
Greg.
Posted 11/14/2012 5:41 AM (GMT 0)
Greg, I don't have links at the moment, but I can tell you about my situation. My T levels dropped before I was diagnosed with PCa (in fact, that was what brought me in to my GP - complaining about the low T symptoms). 1 year after my prostatectomy, my surgeon/uro agreed to put me on T supplementation. At 2 years out, I had a BCR. I went through SRT, and 1 year after that finished, I went back on T supplementation, have been on it since. Some docs (my GP for one), say they would never consider T supplementation for anyone that has been diagnosed with PCa, successfully treated or not. However, there is an increased number of MDs recently (according to my uro) that believe that as long as your goal is to reach normal levels (about 500), and not elevated levels, it should not be problematic. My uro would pull me off if I had another BCR. Without the supplementation, my levels are between 100 and 200.

Are you suffering from low T? If not, I would not recommend trying to increase your level. But if you are just trying to reach normal levels, your doc might be agreeable to helping with this.
Jeff
Posted 11/14/2012 5:53 AM (GMT 0)
A link of relevance:
www.drdach.com/uploads/testosterone_rhoden.pdf
Posted 11/14/2012 5:58 AM (GMT 0)
www.lef.org/magazine/mag2008/dec2008_Destroying-the-Myth-about-Testosterone-Replacement-Prostate-Cancer_02.htm

There may be some references of relevance in the biblio of this article.
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