Lessons Learned: My Experience With Prostate Cancer

[Martinjmpr]

At the risk of hijacking the thread (which is not my intention) I'll mention the EXTERNAL radiation treatment that I had.

They had to implant some "targets" which are actually made of gold. The process is similar to the one for the prostate biopsy, so not fun but not terrible either (let's just say I don't find "anal probe" jokes to be terribly funny anymore and leave it at that. )

But once that was done, the treatment itself could not have been easier: I'd drive to the clinic (Rocky Mtn Cancer Center), they'd have me undo my belt and pull my pants down slightly (I didn't need to actually undress) then lay on the table for 5 minutes while the little radiation zapper thing moved around, and then I was done. No pain or discomfort, it couldn't have been easier.

I did have some issues with frequent urination, this is due to irritation of the bladder, but they put me on Flow Max for that. I still take it, every other day, but I very rarely have to urinate in the middle of the night.

So if you're in this situation, I'd recommend you consider external radiation. It's the least-invasive of all the procedures and at least for me as well as my brother, it seems to be working well.

[JoeRoss]

Exceptionally well written, and like Bert says, should be published for others to read.

I have a friend who has numbers at the "7 - 8" level. He is over 70 years old. He had a biopsy done and it was positive. He has discussed the different options with his doctor (who recommends surgery) which is the option my friend wants to go for. But he is apprehensive about the procedure (of course) the fact that his wife passed away a few years ago (from a different kind of cancer) he has no one to care for him with the post operative help, that it sounds like he would need. I keep telling him what the alternative is, and offering the limited help that I could provide, he keeps saying.....I know, I know.

Hoping for a complete recovery for you Thomas.
As your wife says..."It takes time"



Edited to add that I will talk to my friend about the External option.

[Doc45]

I’ve read less well written articles in medical journals-thank you for the write up and sending best wishes you recover quickly. I just turned 67 and get checked yearly though thankfully pc is one medical issue that doesn’t run in my family-we have plenty of others.

[theGinsue]

Thomas-
Even though I give you incessant grief what you put forth here deserves to be published in a way that all men (and their partners) can read it.
Nicely done and heal up.*

That was my intention for writing this. Because I know this has and will effect many men and their partners, I wanted to help them understand everything I saw and experienced.

After my diagnosis, I reached out to everyone I knew that had gone through this so I'd have the best picture of the options and what I'd be facing.

You know first-hand that I was pretty damned scared. Your "this too shall pass" messages provided me with some comfort. I tried relying on my faith in God and turning it all over to Him, but I'm stubborn and fear has a way of gripping me tightly (good thing I don't scare easy!).

*its amazing what you can come up with when you have nothing but time and can't rub one out.....

That is SO wrong.
...and 100% accurate.

You always keep me in stitches with laughter brother!

OK, I went through this in 2022 and I'm surprised your doctor didn't recommend EXTERNAL radiation. My brother who is 1 year older than me and a family friend both went through this before I did and both chose radiation, and that's what I chose as well.

There is a family history of prostate cancer (dad had it at 62 and my brother was diagnosed at 58.) So when I was diagnosed at 59, it wasn't a surprise.

There are different types of radiation therapy. The one you talked about, INTERNAL radiation, where they plant a radioactive "seed" is one but I opted for the targeted EXTERNAL radiation treatment. There are a couple of different kinds, one is called "CyberKnife" and consists of 5, 20 minute treatments. However, that was not approved by my insurer (TriCare) so I went with the older type of radiation which was 20, 5 minute treatments over the space of a little less than a month.

My dad did the prostate removal but that was back in 2002 and I don't know that they had the same radiation options. It is a major surgery and one I did not want to have unless it was absolutely necessary. After discussing it with my doctor, I went with the radiation treatment.

My treatment was completed in April 2022. At the time of my diagnosis my PSA was 6.5 and my Gleason score was 7.

As of last month, my PSA is down to 1.4 and seems to be dropping. My brother (who was treated a year before me and had the CyberKnife) is down below zero.

My side effects have been minimal. Worst one is low testosterone but the doctors won't start treating that until my PSA drops below .5.

At the risk of hijacking the thread (which is not my intention) I'll mention the EXTERNAL radiation treatment that I had.

They had to implant some "targets" which are actually made of gold. The process is similar to the one for the prostate biopsy, so not fun but not terrible either (let's just say I don't find "anal probe" jokes to be terribly funny anymore and leave it at that. )

But once that was done, the treatment itself could not have been easier: I'd drive to the clinic (Rocky Mtn Cancer Center), they'd have me undo my belt and pull my pants down slightly (I didn't need to actually undress) then lay on the table for 5 minutes while the little radiation zapper thing moved around, and then I was done. No pain or discomfort, it couldn't have been easier.

I did have some issues with frequent urination, this is due to irritation of the bladder, but they put me on Flow Max for that. I still take it, every other day, but I very rarely have to urinate in the middle of the night.

So if you're in this situation, I'd recommend you consider external radiation. It's the least-invasive of all the procedures and at least for me as well as my brother, it seems to be working well.

I don't feel you're hijacking the thread at all. In fact, this s a topic I think we all need to be aware of and to know ALL of the options in front of us. I thank you for sharing this information and your experience. Knowledge is power and when it applies to your health, it's priceless!

This is the first I've heard of the EXTERNAL radiation option. My urologist, treatment and surgery has all been through Evans Army Community Hospital at Ft. Carson and external was never mentioned.

Even with all of the research I'd done on treatments, effects, etc. I never came across anything discussing the external option. I actually wish I'd known about it as I might have considered going that route.

Brother, I'm very happy to hear that you too have successfully beat this thing!

ETA: I hope you don't mind, but I took what you wrote about the external radiation treatment, tweaked it a bit and added it in to my OP article.

Exceptionally well written, and like Bert says, should be published for others to read.

I have a friend who has numbers at the "7 - 8" level. He is over 70 years old. He had a biopsy done and it was positive. He has discussed the different options with his doctor (who recommends surgery) which is the option my friend wants to go for. But he is apprehensive about the procedure (of course) the fact that his wife passed away a few years ago (from a different kind of cancer) he has no one to care for him with the post operative help, that it sounds like he would need. I keep telling him what the alternative is, and offering the limited help that I could provide, he keeps saying.....I know, I know.

Hoping for a complete recovery for you Thomas.
As your wife says..."It takes time"

Edited to add that I will talk to my friend about the External option.

If anyone knows of a medium where I could share/publish this to really get the word out, I'd definitely consider using it. I'll even add the information about the external radiation option as it's important folks are aware of all of their options. I want this information shared as widely as possible, as long as I maintain credit for writing it.

I'm sorry to hear that your friend is facing this right now, but PLEASE encourage him to get treatment right away. If prostate cancer spreads it quickly goes into both your bones and into your other glands (there are actually many glands near/around the prostate). Once it spreads it is more difficult - and more painful to eradicate. While I feared the treatment, I feared the effects of it spreading, including dying, more.

[thebolt]

We should all appreciate your openess and personal sacrifice in sharing your experiences and research. I assure you that your post will get many men to move forward for testing. I've lost two close friends due to prostrate cancer and it was a terrible experience for them to go through. We will all go through prostate cancer at some point and your post is a great inspiration to us all.

Your post will save lives and not many people can achieve that status in life.

Thank you Ginsue!

[BPTactical]

One thing I would like to add to Thomas's articulation on the subject- While PSA scores are an important indicator of potential problems they are not an absolute and are only an indicator. If you have a PSA screen and it comes back elevated don't flip your lid.
Your not gonna die.
You don't necessarily have prostate cancer.
You might not have anything other than a few years under your belt.
PSA's can be elevated for any number of reasons.

For Chrissake DO NOT GET ON THE INTERNET!
There is so much inaccurate information out there you will be convinced that your gonna croak in 5.37 days.

Find a competent Urologist and follow through.

[theGinsue]

100% right Bert. I should have articulated that in my write-up. I'll add that to my next re-write.


ETA: I've added Bert's important comment into the write-up (tweaked it a tad to fit in with what I had).

[BlasterBob]

Prostate C hit me like a ton of bricks back in 2010. Gleason numbers were 3+4=7 and another Pathologist advised was 4+3=7. We went up to Downers Grove, IL and had Brachytherapy which consisted of 80 some radioactive pellets poked into my Prostate. Was just a "piece of cake" for me. They had me drink a LOT of liquids before letting me go home. Should have taken a pee before driving home but kept putting off until we could find a gas station to use their facilities. Got up to the urinal and had to pee so bad, thought I was going to have an explosion of my old Bladder. Was shocked to find that when I got dressed after the procedure that I put my boxers on backwards. With a lot of fishing around, I just barely made it. The next day, drove from Downers Grove to Trinidad and for the entire trip it felt like I was sitting on a golf ball.
Now, then about 8 years later, I had Bladder C. Treatment was Chemo and Radiation which apparently killed the Cancer but it destroyed my Bladder to the point that I now have a Foley catheter 24 hours a day for the rest of my days (I turn 87 next month) Shrunk my bladder down to the size of a walnut. It is a real bother but beats the alternative. Get your Prostate checked as suggested.
Blaster Bob

[beast556]

Mr G
Thank you for writing this up. My dad has prostate cancer and is stubborn and doesn't trust doctors so he is not gonna get treatment for it. My younger brother is 42 and just beat colon cancer from the looks of it. After reading this I'm going to insist on a psa test at my next annual check up. When I asked last time he didnt seem concerned and said I was to young still to get testing done.

[theGinsue]

Damn Bob, I'm sorry you've had to go through all of that - but I'm VERY happy that you're still here with us.

Beast, you're in your 40's. While there's a good chance you're in the clear, it's always better to know for sure - especially with a family history. Good on you for planning to insist on getting checked out! As for your dad, my guess is he's young enough where he's got a lot of years ahead of him. Prostate cancer is very survivable - if you do something about it. I came too damned close to waiting too long and allowing the cancer the chance to spread. There are a lot of guys with stories of having to fight it after it's spread and none of those stories are pleasant. Fighting cancer just plain sucks! Please encourage your dad to take action. Let him know you'd like him to be around for another couple of decades or more.

Any way you look at it, cancer is scary. My perspective is that knowledge is power and the more you know about what to look for, and what to expect, the less scary and the better the prognosis it can be.

I think the biggest take away's from my write up I'm hoping folks with have are to be your own health advocate and demand testing and to know what your options are should a bad result be presented.

I've been doing a LOT of research about various types of cancer over the last year. One of the things I've run across in several articles recently is researchers making the statement that "we're seeing cancer behaving in ways we've never seen before". To this, I've also read repeatedly that cancer rates are going way up in the United States. I suspect this it tied to our diets and lifestyles.

One of my hunting partners, the wife of the hunting partner that just had his prostate removed in July due to cancer, was recently tested and it appears she has cervical cancer and masses within her breasts that they'll be looking into shortly. She was driven to get herself checked following her husbands positive cancer diagnosis.

About the time I got diagnosed, I had another friend diagnosed with Stage 3 Lung Cancer. She'd never smoked in her life and has maintained a good life style. She's since received treatment and it appears the cancer is in remission. The timing of her diagnosis added to my fears as I had some odd symptoms, which my primary care doctor (PCM) noticed as well AFTER I insisted on getting checked. My PCM's words to me practically paralyzed me - she told me "I think you may have lung cancer". I'd smoked a pack a day since 1999. After a CT scan of my torso I was told my lungs were clear - no cancer. Feeling I'd just dodged a bullet I finally quit smoking on January 2nd of this year. If I can stay clear for 7 years I'm told my risk of lung cancer is no greater than it is for the average non-smoker.

This site isn't just an anonymous online group of users. This site is a community of like-minded (to a degree) members. Each member here is valued and many of us form life-long friendships. Life is already short enough and we all need to do everything in our power to ensure it isn't made shorter by something we could have either prevented or treated. And, whether you stay active on this site or eventually drift away into the ether, I'd like to believe that you will do so in good health for a long time to come.