does Eligard ever wear off

Some of those symptoms you give are probably due to radiation.  A lot of men have sexual problems after radiation.  Some never have an errection again.  That alone can cause a man to fall into depression.  I was on Eligard for one year and I think 9 months later it was mostly  out of my system.  But I think the radiaton may be more to blame for the symtoms you give.  And those symptoms from rad can last for years. I am almost 4 years past radiation and I still feel tired and, well, other  symptoms 

HolyMole said:

Eligard

Did your partner only start Eligard after radiation?

The effects of my 9 months of Eligard (6 mos + 3 mos) should ideally have "ended" in mid-August/13, but are still there, albeit perhaps waning a little. Other posters have suggested between 2 - 3 months before the effects have slowed or disappeared. For me, that means I should be back, close to normal, by Christmas. If not, I'll ask for my money back.

That is really funny!!

Brian R. said:

Eligard

I was eligard for 2 1/2 years and had 45 radiation treatments for a total of 81gray. I was lucky my cancer was found just before I was 70, and I think a fairly fit 70 as I jogged 3 times a week, still surfed on body board and skindived when possible. Had 2 three monthly Eligard injections before I started radiation therapy, and had to be on them for 2 years from when I finished my radiation. Could not jog whilst getting radiation it was too tiring. But started again after radiation finished, short runs and slow, but persevered and increased distance and speed, but used to run into wall. That is, it would take a lot of perseverance and very hard to improve time and distance, with the last 5 months taking a lot of mental effort. Had my Last 3 monthly injection December 2012, which lasted in my system for longer than 3 months, with not starting to feel any real lift in my exercise routine until nearly June 2013.

It is now May 2014, still get occasional mild hot flushes and jogging distance and speed picked up again in the last 2 months. Last blood test was last December and PSA was 0.02 and testosterone 14.

Hope my experience can be some help you. 

Brian

Thanks for sharing your experience. It seams that your testosterone (14 ng/dL) is too low and such could be the reason for feeling tiring. You may need some patches to increase T level.

There are cases where the pituitary do not return to its normal functions after prolonged LHRH agonist administration. This could be your case and you should get informed.

Best.

VG

I've been on the "on again off again" approach with the Eligard.  I've been taking the 3 month shots and then taking a break until the PSA starts to rise.  First time I got the shot my PSA dropped to .2 ng/ml which was really good.  During that time I had plenty of hotflashes, night sweats, loss of libido, frequent desire to urinate during the night and trouble sleeping accordingly. I worked out continuosly so I never noticed increased fatigue.  After I stopped treatment symptoms went away within 2 months.  Sexual desire was back with a vengeance and hot flashes stopped completely.  I was good for approx 8 months before PSA began to rise again.  Got up to 4.5 ng/ml so I got another 3 month shot.  During that time side effects returned along with some minor swelling in legs and weight gain, but PSA eventually went down to .4 ng/ml.  At that point I opted to get off the drug again and thus far it has been 3 months since the the time the drug should have worn off and I'm still experiencing hotflashes, night sweats and literally no sex drive at all!  I don't even think about sex! I've been reading about other experiences out here about permanent effects of the Eligard.  Just wondering if there's any hope of a return to normalcy after taking this drug.  Also is there an alternative drug that still helps fight the prostate cancer but no permanent side effects?

btexprs said:

Concerned About Permanent Side Effects

I've been on the "on again off again" approach with the Eligard.  I've been taking the 3 month shots and then taking a break until the PSA starts to rise.  First time I got the shot my PSA dropped to .2 ng/ml which was really good.  During that time I had plenty of hotflashes, night sweats, loss of libido, frequent desire to urinate during the night and trouble sleeping accordingly. I worked out continuosly so I never noticed increased fatigue.  After I stopped treatment symptoms went away within 2 months.  Sexual desire was back with a vengeance and hot flashes stopped completely.  I was good for approx 8 months before PSA began to rise again.  Got up to 4.5 ng/ml so I got another 3 month shot.  During that time side effects returned along with some minor swelling in legs and weight gain, but PSA eventually went down to .4 ng/ml.  At that point I opted to get off the drug again and thus far it has been 3 months since the the time the drug should have worn off and I'm still experiencing hotflashes, night sweats and literally no sex drive at all!  I don't even think about sex! I've been reading about other experiences out here about permanent effects of the Eligard.  Just wondering if there's any hope of a return to normalcy after taking this drug.  Also is there an alternative drug that still helps fight the prostate cancer but no permanent side effects?

To make a long story short, the 'after' effects of hormone therapy vary quite a bit among individuals. Age plays a role as well. I agree with Vasco to get a testosterone measurement. In the meantime, I do hope that the effects that you are experiencing will wear off before too long. 

The next time you need hormone therapy, you could try Lupron, with the consent of your doctor, of course. But it has side effects as well; hard to predict how serious they would be for you. The fact is that all hormone therapy drugs have side effects.

I hope that your PSA will stay low for a long time.

I had three continuous shots of Eligard 45mg (6-month each) for a period of 18 months and experienced numerous side effects but these faded away accompanying the increase of the testosterone, since the end of the effectiveness of the Eligard. It took me about 6 months to get into normal testosterone levels (>250 ng/dL). Probably some of scars were created along the ADT period but are now unnoticed.

I wonder if your husband's shot was administered 11 months ago. If that is the fact then he may still be in low levels of testosterone which may be the reason for the symptoms. He should wait further and get a testosterone test to verify if he is still in castration. Please read above post for more details.

Best,

VG

Hi there,

There are a number of factors to consider when trying to determine if a man's testosterone will recover after ADT.
First up is the level of testosterone  and SHBG, Sex Hormone Binding Globulin, before the ADT starts. The higher they are the better the chance that it will recover. Testosterone will not recover to a level higher than you had before ADT so the higher the starting point the more chance you have of getting back to something reasonable.
Your age is another factor, the system has a better chance of switching back on again if you have ADT in your fifties instead of your seventies.
The time that you are on ADT is another factor, six months is a lot better than eighteen months, after eighteen months the curve drops off even more rapidly and a higher proportion of men will never recover or recover to a level where they are below the normal range.
As a rough guide you will start to recover around three to six months after stopping ADT and recovery can go on for up to two years.
This is dependent on the time that you are on ADT and individual factors.
Recovery is quicker and very much more likely if you only have six months and you are likely to have less permanent things like small testicles, permanently raised blood pressure and glucose, etc.
ADT is a double edged sword, it has undoubted benefits in killing prostate cancer cells in association with radiation but it can have transitory and permanent effects.

Best wishes,

Georges

Hi all .. I live in Australia and was diagnosed with prostate cancer last year after my PSA was 7.8. Elected for radiation treatment and Eligard hormone injection every 3 months.

Here's the rub. PSA 0.08, but hot flushes mean I have forgotten was a good night's sleep might be like. I am due another Eligard shot but have elected to miss the jab. I have yet to tell my doctor.

In the meantime, I am working out with weights, cycling, pilates and walking 6 kilometres every other day. I feel great otherwise.

Is anyone else in this boat?

Hi VG .. thank you for your thoughtful response.

I take on board what you say, and I will speak with my doctor next week.

My concern is that without decent sleep, my health and well-being will suffer regardless of the process and treatment.

Thank you for your input .. John

You are experiencing a delayed effect of the hormone (Eligard) treatment. It can take time to get back to 'normal' and some men never get back. You should ask for testosterone tests. Perhaps those will clarify what is going on.

PS: I don't support your hypothesis

So I think my 'hot flushes' result from increased testosterone. I think there is a battle going on between testosterone with the last hormone treatment.

Continue your exercise regimen!