Hot flashes and night sweats are common side effects of cancer treatments such as surgery, chemotherapy, and radiation therapy. The following cancers and treatments can cause hot flashes:

• Breast cancer: Breast cancer and its treatments can cause hot flashes and night sweats. Breast cancer affects the production of sex hormones, which can lead to menopause-like effects, including severe hot flashes.

• Prostate cancer: Men who have surgery to remove their testicles as part of prostate cancer treatment may experience hot flashes. This may also happen if a man is taking estrogen or gonadotropin-releasing hormone.

• Other cancers: Other cancer patients who may report hot flashes due to tumor secretion include those with medullary thyroid cancer, pancreatic cancer, or renal cell carcinoma.

Certain medications given for cancer treatment may also cause hot flashes as a side effect. For example, tamoxifen, a medication used to treat hormone receptor-positive breast cancer, can cause hot flashes.