My question might be a little premature for me but my reason for asking is related to financial costs.  My insurance plan renews in a few weeks & I pay the entire costs myself.  By getting some idea of how often Lupron is administered I can determine if it is cheaper for me to continue with my present plan where I pay 50% of the costs of prescriptions or change my drug plan to where I would pay a $25 copay for drugs.  The change in plan would cost me an additional $140 a month in premiums.  Currently, I do not take any prescription drugs.  for that reason, if lupron is less than $300 a month, I am better off staying with my present plan.  Also, does taking Lupron or getting radiaiton require other drugs?

I am being a little premature in anticipating this development but am doing it due to the insurance renewal anniversary date.  My surgery was done in October of 2009.  As you can see in my signature, my margins were negative and my Gleason was 3+4.  My first PSA at 6 weeks was undetectable but my second PSA at 6 months was .1. 

The surgeon said that scar damage to my prostate from 4 biopsies made it very difficult to peel my prostate from my rectal wall & that the PSA could be coming from benign tissue left behind since my margins were clear.  My surgeon says that if my PSA goes up to .3 I will need radiation.  Since I have had a lot of incontinence problems, my surgeon would delay radiation until I have had a year of recovery from surgery to maximize the time for improvemnt of continence as he says radiation will halt any improvement in continence.  For that reason he will prescribe Lupron to hold cancer growth in check till then.  That is the reason for asking how often Lupron is administered.

I also want to hear any thoughts about whether or not I should even go on hormones until radiation is given & if there is any scientific evidence that says I need to go the radiation route at .3 PSA since the PSA could be from benign prostate tissue left behind.  Also, are there any hormones with better effectiveness & less side effects than Lupron?  Thanks in advance!

 

Hi HL,

There are alternatives but they work the same way and I really do not know if they are better or more economical. The latest is degarelix just approved recently so likely to be costly. I took the four month injection for two years. Just coming off of the stuff. It was recommended in my case due to metastasis to the lymph node and was administered concurrent with radiation as primary treatment. I am uninsured and my doctor gave me big break on the stuff. I think I paid around $1200 per shot.

Best of luck to you.
Don

BB_Fan said...
Hi HL, I just went through the same thing you are doing. Choosing between two plans offer by me company, One had a drug coverage limit of $2000 that would be a real problem for me since I knew that I would be going on HT. I found after looking into it that the limit only applied to perscription drug taken at home. Any drug administered in a doctors office or hospital was covered under other sections related to hospital visits, treatment etc.. BB

Thanks for that info.  What state do you live in?  I'm in New Jersey.  What you are saying makes a lot of sense.

The LHRH drugs (lupron, zoladex, precisis, trelstar etc.) averages out to around $10,000 a year more or less, you can get monthly injections, or 3 mo., or one year implant even. Beautiful stuff and we are over charged, same lupron in Spain for 3 mo. shot is around $400 US dollars, here maybe $2500. (feel the love) Can't expect your uro doc to drive around in a Chevy now can we. Its our culture and compassion not for people but for $$$$ that comes first...this is the way it is, works well for the powerful, endowed and power players. Not as much fun for the proliterates and surfs (LOL).

Comparison for fun: DES man made drug that out performs LHRH drugs and per Journal article works even on HRPCa, when the other stuff has stopped working(which I have witnessed). I found a source for around $125 per year and have been using it for 4-5 yrs. (intermittently at some times). I had 8-9 consecutive rises (although very tiny numbers) on ADT3 combo drugs(2002-2003 era), started DES about 5 yrs. ago and psa declined and stabilized so well, that I went off drugs for 1 yr. as a test, then resumed with slight psa rise and have had fabulous results and stabilization for years (so far). Side effects basically none, no hot flashes, no sweats, no muscle aches, no weigh issues, feel great and cannot express enough the differences. What a country ADT3 combo back in 2002-2005 costs maybe $13,000+ a year, DES outperformed and did me much better at $125 per year. Go figure. Of course your uro doc will not mention any choices other than the high profit margin stuff, I guess it is all in YOUR best interests! (lol)