Melatonin for Hot Flashes in Men with Prostate Cancer Receiving ADT
Hot flashes are a common complaint related to ADT, reported by 70-80% men receiving this therapy. In this double-blind placebo-controlled RCT, 41 men with prostate cancer receiving ADT were randomized to either placebo or melatonin 3mg BID for 4 weeks.
Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy–Prostate (FACT-P) scores significantly improved with use of melatonin (p< 0.05). Melatonin seemed most effective for the reduction of mild hot flashes, with significant improvements seen by week 4 of the trial (p< 0.05). Melatonin was well-tolerated, with no significant adverse events reported by participants.
Melatonin might offer an especially pertinent support in this group, since men on ADT also report high levels of insomnia in other trials, sometimes related to nocturia or to vasomotor symptoms themselves; other studies demonstrate a reduction in ADT-induced sleep problems with melatonin supplementation at doses similar to the that used in the trial above.
Citation:
Etedali A, Hosseni AK, Derakhshandeh A, Mehrzad V, Sharifi M, Moghaddas A. Melatonin in the Management of Mood and Sleep Problems Induced by Androgen Deprivation Therapy in Prostate Cancer Patients: A Randomized Double-blinded, Placebo-controlled Clinical Trial. Iran J Pharm Res. 2022 Sep 30;21(1):e128817. doi: 10.5812/ijpr-128817.
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