This is another rich and substantial paper from Paul Jacobsen’s research group at the Moffitt Cancer Centre in Tampa, Florida. Here the researchers follow three age and education matched groups: 60 patients on ADT, 85 prostate cancer patients treated with a prostatectomy, but no ADT, and lastly 86 men without prostate cancer.
Men on ADT show continually worsening fatigue over a 12 month period compared to the controls. Men, who had other health problems (i.e., comorbidities) before starting ADT and higher Gleason scores at the start of treatment, appeared to be at greater risk of fatigue. A conclusion one can draw form this is that one’s health overall matters as much as their cancer control.
Nelson AM, Gonzalez BD, Jim HS, Cessna JM, Sutton SK, Small BJ, Fishman MN, Zachariah B, Jacobsen PB. 2016. Characteristics and predictors of fatigue among men receiving androgen deprivation therapy for prostate cancer: a controlled comparison. Support Care Cancer 24(10):4159-4166. www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27142516