Hormone Treatment

Hormone treatment may be recommended for patients with prostate cancer that has spread beyond the prostate. Hormone treatment, also called androgen deprivation therapy, aims to reduce the levels of male hormones, or androgens, like testosterone, in the body. This is done by preventing the testicles from producing these hormones, either by removing the testicles or chemically-limiting their hormone-production ability. Lowering androgen levels can help control the growth of prostate cancer, or even shrink it. However, it will not cure prostate cancer.

Orchiectomy

An orchiectomy, or surgical castration, removes the testicles which produce 90 percent of androgens. This is a simple, economical procedure, but a permanent one. In most cases, it will make prostate cancer cells stop growing or shrink for a time.

Luteinizing Hormone-Releasing Hormone

Luteinizing hormone-releasing hormone (LHRH) analogs and antagonists are drugs that lower the amount of testosterone made in the testicles. Sometimes referred to as chemical castration, it is just as effective as orchiectomy.

Anti-androgens are drugs that block the body’s ability to use any male hormones and are usually used in combination with another type of hormone treatment. They may be prescribed if either surgical or chemical castration is not working on its own.