Weight and muscle changes

Hormone therapy is a common treatment for prostate cancer. It can cause different side effects including weight and muscle changes.

Does hormone therapy for prostate cancer cause weight changes?

Yes, hormone therapy can cause you to put on weight.

How can I avoid weight gain during hormone therapy for prostate cancer?

Changing your diet and being more physically active may help you to maintain your normal weight.

Can hormone therapy affect my muscles?

Yes, it can cause loss of muscle mass and strength.

Some cancer treatments can lower the levels of sex hormones in the body. The sex hormones are oestrogen and progesterone in women, and testosterone in men. The cancer treatments include hormone therapy for prostate cancer.

Prostate cancer needs testosterone to grow. Hormonal therapy aims to:

stop the testicles from making testosterone
stop testosterone from reaching cancer cells

How do sex hormones affect weight and muscle?

As we get older we lose muscle strength. Hormone therapy which lowers testosterone levels can also cause loss of muscle bulk in men. It can lead to:

loss of muscle mass
loss of muscle strength

Hormone treatment can also cause you to put on weight. This is usually around your waist. It can also make you feel tired and less active. This can then make the weight gain worse.

How can I avoid gaining weight and losing muscle?

Changing your diet and being more physically active may help you

Exercise

Exercise can help to maintain muscle strength, but it needs to be a combination of aerobic and resistance exercise.

Aerobic exercise is any exercise that makes your heart and lungs work faster to provide more oxygen to the muscles. An example is walking or gardening.

Resistance exercises include weight training and swimming. You have to use your muscles to push against the weights or water, which helps to strengthen them.

Physical activity also helps to control your weight. You don’t have to go to the gym, you can build it into your life. For example, you could:

get off the bus at the stop before you need to
do some gardening
join a walking group

Some hospitals organise exercise sections for cancer patients. Ask your specialist nurse if this is available.

You should aim to be physically active for 30 minutes 5 days a week. Your doctor may check your cholesterol and heart health before you start an exercise plan. This is important if you have conditions such as diabetes or you are overweight.

Talk to your doctor or specialist nurse before you start if you aren’t normally very physically active. They can help you work out what is best for you.

Diet

Eating a balanced healthy diet can help you to maintain a healthy weight. It can also help you lose or put it on if you need to.

Bone health

Hormone therapy can lower your bone density. This increases the risk of fractures. Talk to your doctor if this could be a problem for you.