Testosterone as a Biomarker for Quality of Life (QOL) Following Androgen Deprivation Therapy (ADT) and Stereotactic...

Androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) causes fatigue and sexual dysfunction. The time to testosterone recovery depends on patient and treatment-specific characteristics. The kinetics of testosterone recovery in men treated with neoadjuvant ADT and stereotactic body radiotherapy (SBRT) is not well established. This study seeks to characterize testosterone recovery and evaluate its relationship with the improvement in patient-reported hormonal and sexual function.

Institutional review board (IRB) approval was obtained for retrospective review of prospectively collected data. All patients with localized prostate cancer treated with short-course ADT (3-6 months of Leuprolide) and robotic SBRT (35-36.25 Gy in five fractions) at a single institution were included in this analysis. Testosterone levels were measured at the start of radiation, every 3 months for the first year, and every 6 months thereafter. Total testosterone recovery was defined as a serum level of >230 ng/dL. Sexual and hormonal function was recorded using the Expanded Prostate Index Composite (EPIC)-26 prior to ADT initiation, the first day of SBRT, and at each follow-up. The EPIC-26 subdomain scores were transformed to a 0-100 scale with higher scores reflecting less bother.

Between January 2009 and May 2018, 122 men with a median age of 72 years (range: 55-89 years) received ADT followed by SBRT. Thirty-two percent (N=39) were black and 27% [N=39 were obese (BMI > 30)]. The median pre-SBRT testosterone level was 15 ng/dL (range: 3-89 ng/dL). Around 77% (N=94) of patients received 3 months of ADT. The median pre-ADT EPIC-26 Hormone and Sexual Domain Scores were 94 and 41, respectively. At 12 months, 71% (N=87) of patients recovered to a eugonadal state with a mean recovery time of 4 months post-SBRT. Hormonal and sexual subdomain scores declined significantly following ADT but recovered to within the minimally important difference (MID) for sexual and hormonal domain scores by 12 months post-SBRT.

Testosterone recovery following short-course ADT with leuprolide and SBRT occurs rapidly in the majority of patients within one year after treatment. Quality of life domain improvements followed the testosterone recovery trend closely. Testosterone testing at follow-up appointments would allow for anticipatory counseling that may limit the bother associated with temporary quality of life decrements.