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User
Posted 06 Jul 2023 at 11:51

Hi

My 76 year old dad was just diagnosed with T3b Mets prostate cancer 

G levels are 74 and he is classed as stage 4.

He's going to start HT and RT but has specified he doesn't want Chemo.

I need to ask....what's the prognosis if he doesn't have chemo?

User
Posted 06 Jul 2023 at 12:18

There are drugs he can have instead of chemo, which are an extra form of hormone therapy.

Some places will start him on these with (or shortly after starting) hormone therapy. Other places will add them in if/when the hormone therapy stops being as effective.

Chemo can buy some more time if the patient has lots of mets and it's used early on. However it does come with the risk of permanent side effects impacting quality of life. Chemo can sometimes be used later instead, but as you get older you are less likely to be able to have it due to other medical conditions which often come with age.

User
Posted 07 Jul 2023 at 14:31

Two and a half years ago I was diagnosed with stage 4 prostate cancer and started hormone treatment immediately. Then three months later had six rounds of chemotherapy. As others have commented it was not as devasting as other chemo drugs. I lost some hair but not all; more thinned out than lost (but it has grown back). Generally I felt fairly well during that course.

Now (two years on) I'm having radiotherapy to reduce the last two tumours the others were eradicated by the chemo. To be honest I'm finding the radiotherapy more debilitating than the chemo. My RT has to date been in the morning and afterwards feel the need to rest by lying down and possibily having a nap.

User
Posted 06 Jul 2023 at 12:11
Chemo doesn't cure prostate cancer so his prognosis won't be much different whether he has it or not.

In the future, if the hormone treatment stops working your dad might have a rethink and agree to chemo as the next step.

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

User
Posted 06 Jul 2023 at 17:46
It's worth noting that the chemo used for prostate cancer treatment is less "brutal" than that for many other forms of cancer, and is well-tolerated by the majority of men.

Best wishes,

Chris

User
Posted 06 Jul 2023 at 22:21

Hi 

I've was diagnosed with stage 4 with bone mets in April 22 at the age of 52 with a starting PSA of 2100 after injections and early treatment and now 10 months on Enzalutamide my QOL is not as it was but all things considered still good with a PSA of 3.23.

Hope this helps regards Phil 

User
Posted 07 Jul 2023 at 00:16

Originally Posted by: Online Community Member

Thankyou all for your replies.

I have to ask....Will he survive beyond 2 years? I know it's a tough question.

Probably. Hormone treatment works for about 90% of men, but after a while it fails and the cancer returns, they then move to more powerful treatment and that lasts a while but then fails. The first line of hormone treatment hardly ever fails in the first year, it will have failed for most men by the fifth year. For some men probably 2-3% the hormone treatment never fails, they live for a decade or so and die of something else.

Your father probably had a life expectancy before cancer of 87. He is currently 76, I think he will see his 80th birthday, I'd be quite surprised if he sees his 85th.

Dave

User
Posted 07 Jul 2023 at 10:01

I was diagnosed with PCa in January 2012 at age 66,  I had a PSA of 408.  I had 6 months HT prior to RT.  My PSA reduced over time to 0.01, it did start rising again and my Oncologist put me back on HT (Decapeptyl) for a while.  I haven’t had HT since 2019.

I had my latest telephone appointment with my oncologist 3 weeks ago and my PSA is now 0.45, she seems ok with that and will speak to me again in 6 months time.

I hope that’s helpful, best wishes Arthur 

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User
Posted 06 Jul 2023 at 12:11
Chemo doesn't cure prostate cancer so his prognosis won't be much different whether he has it or not.

In the future, if the hormone treatment stops working your dad might have a rethink and agree to chemo as the next step.

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

User
Posted 06 Jul 2023 at 12:18

There are drugs he can have instead of chemo, which are an extra form of hormone therapy.

Some places will start him on these with (or shortly after starting) hormone therapy. Other places will add them in if/when the hormone therapy stops being as effective.

Chemo can buy some more time if the patient has lots of mets and it's used early on. However it does come with the risk of permanent side effects impacting quality of life. Chemo can sometimes be used later instead, but as you get older you are less likely to be able to have it due to other medical conditions which often come with age.

User
Posted 06 Jul 2023 at 17:46
It's worth noting that the chemo used for prostate cancer treatment is less "brutal" than that for many other forms of cancer, and is well-tolerated by the majority of men.

Best wishes,

Chris

User
Posted 06 Jul 2023 at 21:13

Thankyou all for your replies.

I have to ask....Will he survive beyond 2 years? I know it's a tough question.

User
Posted 06 Jul 2023 at 22:21

Hi 

I've was diagnosed with stage 4 with bone mets in April 22 at the age of 52 with a starting PSA of 2100 after injections and early treatment and now 10 months on Enzalutamide my QOL is not as it was but all things considered still good with a PSA of 3.23.

Hope this helps regards Phil 

User
Posted 07 Jul 2023 at 00:16

Originally Posted by: Online Community Member

Thankyou all for your replies.

I have to ask....Will he survive beyond 2 years? I know it's a tough question.

Probably. Hormone treatment works for about 90% of men, but after a while it fails and the cancer returns, they then move to more powerful treatment and that lasts a while but then fails. The first line of hormone treatment hardly ever fails in the first year, it will have failed for most men by the fifth year. For some men probably 2-3% the hormone treatment never fails, they live for a decade or so and die of something else.

Your father probably had a life expectancy before cancer of 87. He is currently 76, I think he will see his 80th birthday, I'd be quite surprised if he sees his 85th.

Dave

User
Posted 07 Jul 2023 at 10:01

I was diagnosed with PCa in January 2012 at age 66,  I had a PSA of 408.  I had 6 months HT prior to RT.  My PSA reduced over time to 0.01, it did start rising again and my Oncologist put me back on HT (Decapeptyl) for a while.  I haven’t had HT since 2019.

I had my latest telephone appointment with my oncologist 3 weeks ago and my PSA is now 0.45, she seems ok with that and will speak to me again in 6 months time.

I hope that’s helpful, best wishes Arthur 

User
Posted 07 Jul 2023 at 12:01
Hi, if its any help I was diagnosed with PC mets nearly 4 years ago, also I had an allergic to chemo so it just back to hormone treatment until my PSA started to rise, so I was put another hormone blocker so there are plenty of potions and variations in the oncologists cupboard.

there's lots of similar on the site, Dave

User
Posted 07 Jul 2023 at 12:07

Again a huge thankyou to you all for responding. Its giving my dad myself and our family a lot of hope. 

 

User
Posted 07 Jul 2023 at 14:31

Two and a half years ago I was diagnosed with stage 4 prostate cancer and started hormone treatment immediately. Then three months later had six rounds of chemotherapy. As others have commented it was not as devasting as other chemo drugs. I lost some hair but not all; more thinned out than lost (but it has grown back). Generally I felt fairly well during that course.

Now (two years on) I'm having radiotherapy to reduce the last two tumours the others were eradicated by the chemo. To be honest I'm finding the radiotherapy more debilitating than the chemo. My RT has to date been in the morning and afterwards feel the need to rest by lying down and possibily having a nap.

 
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