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Hormone treatment no longer working

User
Posted 04 Jan 2019 at 23:35

Hello 

My dad, aged 60, has advanced PC. He had the op 5 years ago to remove the prostate but cells had escaped and attached to his lungs and others are floating. Since the op his count has been managed by hormone treatment, both implant and tablets but he has now been told that he is no longer responding to the hormone treatment.  The medical team are considering next options but just wondered if anyone knows what these might be.

Are there other hormone treatments he can try or would it probably mean Chemo?

His PSA is 4 , which seems low compared to other stories I have read so I may have this wrong. 

Many thanks 

User
Posted 05 Jan 2019 at 10:42
Yes, once he has lung metastases and they talk of 'floating' cells, chemo is the one option: but a big field these days.

Neither radiotherapy nor surgery would be useful, except to deal with local issues (eg bone pain). Although there a variety of hormone preparations, they all work on the same principle, and if the cells are no longer receptive, that will apply to all.

If the cancer cells are no longer hormone-sensitive, this suggests that they are becoming 'undifferentiated'; they are 'cancer cells' no longer acting like 'prostate cancer cells', and don't necessarily affect PSA levels.

Also, once the cancer is metastasising, progress is more usefully assessed by scans, signs and symptoms.

The next step is probably considering which chemo regime would be appropriate to the stage he is at - and there may be research options.

User
Posted 05 Jan 2019 at 12:31

Thanks very much :) 

User
Posted 06 Jan 2019 at 01:50
Sorry to see this, Mary. They may suggest adding Enzalutimide or Abiraterone?
"Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards." Soren Kierkegaard

 
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