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Re: The decision for waiting with a borderline diagnosis
Hi Bill,
Sorry to hear of your operation outcome. We all hope it doesn't happen to us, but the risk is there, I agree.
However, impotency or incontinence is not as much a concern to me as this cancer's potential to shorten my rather pleasant life. A lot of my hope is centered around keeping what I have already in good condition.
Re: The decision for waiting with a borderline diagnosis
Kevin,
I think you and I have much similarity in our priorities. Since my surgery in 2007 my life quality has been excellent. And my PSA is undetectable. I did have to move to action more quickly than you because my Gleason was 7 and my cancer was more widespread in the biopsy. My very experienced urologist said he'd support whatever course of treatment I chose, but he strongly advised me not to delay due to the specifics of my situation. He prognosticated "you're going to come out of this feeling like you dodged a bullet." Right he was. My wife and I did a few weeks of research (on surgeons throughout the US) and went forward quickly thereafter. We chose well, I was 65 then.
I have elected to stay away from any hormone treatments precisely because I do not want those side effects. Such as reduced muscle mass, weakened bones, less energy. I live an active athletic life still. Fortunately.
You have every reason to be optimistic about your future. And you don't have the need to rush that I had. But watch carefully in the meantime.
Re: The decision for waiting with a borderline diagnosis
You might like to look at the UK's NICE guidelines, which detail the recommended practice for different conditions, plus why it is recommended. Having looked at many many other sources of information, I found the recommendations to be rational and unbiased. See the links on http://www.nice.org.uk/CG058
For my own part, I decided that since (to the best of my knowledge) I'm going to die, how long I live is less important than how I live and die. One upside of PCa is that I'm less likely to get dementia and be a burden on my daughter. Hence, given the reasonable alternatives, I made my treatment decisions based on how side effects would affect my life, plus the probability of the side effects occurring, of course.
I hope that helps you make the decisions that are appropriate for you.
