Prostate Cancer Survivors

 

YANA - YOU ARE NOT ALONE NOW

PROSTATE CANCER SUPPORT SITE

 

 

This forum is for the discussion of anything to do with Prostate Cancer.
There are only four rules:

  • No fundraisers, no commercials (although it is OK to recommend choices of treatment or medical people based on your personal research; invitations to participate in third-party surveys are also acceptable, provided there is no compensation to YANA);
  • No harvesting e-mail addresses for Spam;
  • No insults or flaming - be polite and respectful at all times and understand that there may be a variety of points of view, all of which may have some validity;
  • Opinions are OK, but please provide as much factual evidence as possible for any assertions that you are making

Failure to abide by these simple rules will result in the immediate and permanent suspension of your posting privileges.

Since this is an International Forum, please specify your location in your post.

General Forum
Start a New Topic 
Author
Comment
View Entire Thread
Re: Just Got The News

Tom:
First off, you need to know if your Gleason score is 3+4 or 4+3. The next order of business is to hear what your Dr. recommends and why. It would help to undertake a little research of your own prior to your treatment-oriented
appointment. By so doing some questions usually begin to materialize. Ask your Dr. what you can expect in the way of outcome--short-range and long-range with special attention to side effects.
Plan on being accompanied by a trusted friend or family member. A second pair of ears can be very helpful. Take notes.
As part of your research effort you may find the following book by Bob Marckini helpful: "You Can Beat Prostate Cancer..." His chapter on the advantages and disadvantages of several methods for treating PCa may be of particular interest to you This book is readily available, an easy read and well worth its modest price. Although this book is nearly ten years old much of this information remains relevant.

In general the more research you undertake before and after your initial meeting(be sure to include up-to-date material) the more likely you will be to make a good decision for yourself. Your research will also enable you to ask good questions of the various clinicians you may encounter as you proceed.

Best wishes Don O

Re: Just Got The News

First and foremost Sorry to hear the news but you are not alone as the site represents!! I am very new to the site and dealing with this disease compared to some others.I agree with Don and would add that its good to over-analyze but for me at the end of the analyzing it boiled down to best cure rate and least amount of side effects since I am very active and 55. At first my urologist said take it out but after reading alot on that option I concluded that the cure rate was the same as other options which at the time made no sense to me since I would no longer have a prostate. I later had learned that nerve sparing surgery can still result in microscopic cells being left and it appeared to have higher chance of side effect of incontinence which was something I wanted to personally lower the risk on and avoid. What I had to really weigh out was if I did not elect surgical removal then that option of surgery would no longer be available if Radiation and seeds were unsuccessful unless someone can dispute what I was told. I was told after Radiation treatments surgery is no longer an option. Internal seeds are not for everyone and as I understand is not an option for everyone given you need to qualify for this option. Some of the qualification depends on your Gleason score and the order of the 4 and 3 as Don notes and your PSA being below 10 and some other variables but that is what I chose since I was a candidate for that choice. My issue was that I was scheduled for the one day seed implants in April 2017 then my PSA had jumped to 11.7 from 8.2 in February 2017 so I no longer qualified and had to then go on a different plan which includes Lupron for 6 months and 22 EBRT sessions prior to my new seed implant scheduled now in September. That was a bummer when I heard that new plan.

My suggestion is that if seed implants indeed are what you decide do schedule it sooner than later to avoid any risk in rise of PSA or other variables that may be end or delay keeping you from that option.

Hope this helps, I have found this site to be very responsive and helpful and I hope
you do as well

Re: Just Got The News

Ok, I have known for about a week. How do I tell anyone. I haven't told my wife, my boss. Nobody. They know I went to a urologist, I told them I had to have a test because my PSA was elevated. I am average. 7.

Re: Just Got The News

TELL YOUR WIFE!! She is as much a part of this as you are. It will effect her as much as you. Wives can be a great help for husbands going through this - if you let them. Probably not such care free days ahead but at this stage there is a great possibility you can successfully treat this. Be strong, PAY ATTENTION, and accept help when it is offered. Jon R.

Re: Just Got The News

Thank You.

Re: Just Got The News

Age is the deciding factor here, Gleason 7 3+4 have reasonable outcomes against 4+3,
staging also critical in deciding what path to take, in my case 54 with stage T3a G7 3+4 meant one option only get rid of the prostate, in majority of cases once at pathology the prostate under examination are graded UP. It is true you've three options Surgery, Radiation, ADT combined. Radiation as a first choice means Surgery out of the question if unsuccessful keep that in mind with staging and Gleason.

Re: Just Got The News

Tell your wife, tell a friend! It will a relief just to get it out. Don't rush to make a decision, you have allot of time to do your research. And remember you' ve probably caught this early which is good news!

RETURN TO HOME PAGE LINKS