But even when this does work, the cancer usually returns in a year or two. PC-SPES, too, seems to work partly by suppressing male hormones. I see many patients on chemo and I think it is worse than the disease itself. So Pirani and many other doctors aren't waiting for the results of more complete studies before recommending the herbal concoction for patients with advanced cancer. They might prescribe it even more freely if it were not for the side effects.
Many patients experience breast enlargement and tender nipples.
A few men taking PC-SPES have developed blood clots, so some doctors prescribe a blood thinner to take along with the herbs. Another drawback is the expense. Still, faced with almost certain death, many patients take on the risk and expense willingly. When Mario Menelly of Bellmore, N.Y., was 43, doctors found that his cancer had spread from his prostate to nearby lymph nodes. Where a healthy man's PSA count rarely goes above 4, Menelly's had climbed to over 100.