Hello all,

I am Dave, a 62 year-old man who was operated on for prostate cancer in 2018. My pre-op PSA was 10.1. My first post-op PSA was less than 0.03 and my second PSA was 0.04, which the surgeon said necessitated a coorse or radiation . I finished that in December of 2018.

My question is : Since I have been interested in castration for many years for testicular pain, would being castrated help me to stay cancer-free?

I have yet to get my first post-radiation PSA. I am hesitant to mention castration to any doctor since they freak out at the word.

Have any men here been castrated for prostate cancer?

Thanks.

Since most forms of prostate cancer will grow faster if a man has testosterone in his body, treatment for prostate cancer often includes taking drugs that prevent the testicles from making any testosterone in the short or long term, or to block testosterone s affects on his body, or surgery to remove both testicles to remove the testosterone production.

I m surprised your dr didn t bring up surgical or chemical castration with you long before he did any surgery. Even removing the entire prostate can leave cancer which has already spread to other parts of a man s body. Which is why radiation treatments and chemo are done to try to kill any cancer that has spread to the rest of his body.

Your dr would not be shocked or surprised if you ask about voluntary chemical or surgical castration to help treat your prostate cancer. Read anything about prostate cancer treatment and castration is almost always listed and discussed as an accepted and commonly done and advised part of the usual treatment options to consider or do.

Seems that Ask The Doc is as ever good advice. Sometimes fighting the big C needs a few shots left in the locker, to be used later if the disease misbehaves.

Cancers evolve with time and have a habit of eventually escaping from each initially effective weapon unleashed against them.

It may be that the doc wants T-reduction as a future weapon. Ask, as we can only suppose....

I think your correct daifu. My Uncle had been pc free for several years after bracytherapy. At the age of 87 they have just started chemical castration as the cancer is back. Not sure what medication he is on, but getting shots at his Dr s every couple of weeks at the moment.

A few questions that would help to give a better answer for you:

1) What was your Gleason score?

2) How many cores on your biopsy were positive?

3) Do you have any current risk of diabetes or cardiovascular disease?

Answers to these three questions will make a difference in the response.

I would also recommend (if your oncologist hasn’t already) Richard Wassersug’s book Androgen Deprivation Therapy. It covers the various consequences of lack of testosterone, including nutrition to help ward off osteoporosis. The book also covers some of the history of castration as treatment for prostate cancer, changes in libido after castration, and a wide variety of other topics that you probably should know more about.