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enzo or abbi

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User
Posted 04 Aug 2018 at 23:42

Hi all just wondering if there are any differences between taking enzalutamide or aburaterone i know one is price and also if you have one you can not switch to the other one at a later date with some health authorities. not sure if this is true .. but really just wondering which is best because i have been told i can take my pick before my treatment starts next week hope somebody can shed some light on this subject 

thanks in advance kevin

User
Posted 05 Aug 2018 at 00:25
There is very little difference between them, in side effects or success rates. Some oncos have a preference for one over the other but it seems yours doesn’t. Men with pre-existing heart problems may be better with one than the other.

It is true that if you have one and it fails, you then cannot have the other under NICE rules, unless you get onto a trial. That’s because if abbi fails, enzo will also fail very quickly and vice versa. The exception is if you start on one and then find within 3 months that you can’t tolerate it for some reason, you are allowed to swap over.

"Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards." Soren Kierkegaard

User
Posted 05 Aug 2018 at 11:37

Abiraterone  a detrimental effect on high blood pressure so it depends on your general health. If you have adverse reactions to one then you can switch to the other. 

My husband has an aneurysm so he tried enzalutamide, he didn’t get on with the side effects so, after chemotherapy he wil most probably be offered abiraterone. We did speak to his oncologist and she reassured us that you can try a different drug because the initial treatment caused side effects that he couldn’t cope with.

however, his PSA dropped dramatically after four weeks of enzalutamide and remained so whilst he was taking steroids 

User
Posted 08 Aug 2018 at 21:20

That’s different from what my husband had, he was prescribed enzalutamide plus steroids, he had a very unpleasant reaction to the enzalutamide but they did bring down his PSA dramatically. He was told to stay on the steroids, halve the dosage of enzalutamide then after four weeks he stopped taking the enzalutamide but stil continued on the steroids for a few months. But now he has tried Docetaxel. He sees his oncologist tomorrow 

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User
Posted 05 Aug 2018 at 00:25
There is very little difference between them, in side effects or success rates. Some oncos have a preference for one over the other but it seems yours doesn’t. Men with pre-existing heart problems may be better with one than the other.

It is true that if you have one and it fails, you then cannot have the other under NICE rules, unless you get onto a trial. That’s because if abbi fails, enzo will also fail very quickly and vice versa. The exception is if you start on one and then find within 3 months that you can’t tolerate it for some reason, you are allowed to swap over.

"Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards." Soren Kierkegaard

User
Posted 05 Aug 2018 at 11:37

Abiraterone  a detrimental effect on high blood pressure so it depends on your general health. If you have adverse reactions to one then you can switch to the other. 

My husband has an aneurysm so he tried enzalutamide, he didn’t get on with the side effects so, after chemotherapy he wil most probably be offered abiraterone. We did speak to his oncologist and she reassured us that you can try a different drug because the initial treatment caused side effects that he couldn’t cope with.

however, his PSA dropped dramatically after four weeks of enzalutamide and remained so whilst he was taking steroids 

User
Posted 08 Aug 2018 at 17:36
Hi thank you both for your reply's i started on enzo today so hope i get some good results from it ,fingers crossed as he did say that there is not alot left to try ...... On the plus side he did say i didn't have to take steroids on enzo but if i went onto abbi i would be back on preds and i've just managed to lose a stone from the time i was having chemo six months ago so didn't fancy the weight gain again ... many thanks kev
User
Posted 08 Aug 2018 at 21:20

That’s different from what my husband had, he was prescribed enzalutamide plus steroids, he had a very unpleasant reaction to the enzalutamide but they did bring down his PSA dramatically. He was told to stay on the steroids, halve the dosage of enzalutamide then after four weeks he stopped taking the enzalutamide but stil continued on the steroids for a few months. But now he has tried Docetaxel. He sees his oncologist tomorrow 

User
Posted 08 Aug 2018 at 21:47
I sometimes do wonder the different paths some of these doctors do choose .... How did your husband get on with his chemo , i was very lucky i didn't suffer to much but was glad to finish as i was starting to wain after the 9th and 10th session ... sadly for me my pc started to wake up almost straight away after stopping ..PSA 0.1 in jan 14.8 july ..... hence starting enzo ..

All the best with your meeting tomorrow ..

 
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