simon43

A question primarily for Sheryl: I have BPH and I also have 2 tumours inside my prostate (I will get the biopsy results soon as to whether they are benign or not. If I take Finasteride to reduce the size of my prostate could it cause those tumours to breach my prostate wall? (ie - as the prostate shrinks slightly and the tumours do not shrink, then maybe they will end up breaching my prostate - not a good scenario if they are canerous). I

Although Finasteride is often recommended to recover hair loss, medical research also indicates that it can reduce the prostate size in BPH. Does anyone have experience *(successful or not) of taking this drug to reduce their BPH symptoms/prostate size?

So how does that work when it says that you signed up just 3 hours ago and your member number is 368,477? Simon (member #174)

According to The Sun newspaper, he has died in the Thai hospital. Not sure if the link is allowed: https://www.thesun.co.uk/news/21880896/brit-dad-dead-motorbike-crash-thai-holiday/

No... see my previous posts on this subject.

I know that it is only a library photo, but the maths on that board doesn't make sense! Does Pythagoras theorem work differently in Thailand?

The pandemic is over but not the air pollution...

In my recent prostate biopsy operation in the UK, as I was hoisted into the leg stirrups and bared my nether regions for all to see, I humourously reminded the young doctor that he was doing a prostate biopsy and not a gender reassignment operation ????

So the original risk was diddly-squat and now treble that risk is also diddly-squat! From the link: "It equates to six cardiac deaths per 100,000 females vaccinated with at least a first dose of a non-mRNA vaccine"

[quote] However it may be pot luck as to how much proof is required by individual NHS locations/overseas visitors officer/GP's WRT to "settle". [/quote] Indeed. In my case, absolutely no proof has ever been requested, neither from the GP with whom I registered, nor with the hospital. I stated that I have been living overseas for 21 years and have now returned to the UK. No-one questioned me whatsoever about this, other than an interest in what life was like in Myanmar and had things changed in the UK. contract of employment - I have none (I am self-employed, teaching online) tenancy agreement - I have none (I am staying in a hotel) evidence of mortgage repayments or of being in the process of purchasing a property - nope! evidence of utility/and or council tax bill payment - nope! evidence a child is enrolled in a school" - nope! Free NHS treatment is dependent on UK residency (more than 183 days/year in the UK). For this current year, although I have not yet been in the UK for 183 days, that will be the case later this year. I have also spent longer in the UK this year than overseas. Anyway, this is off-topic!

When I returned to the UK, I registered with a GP on Thursday, had my appointment with the GP the following Monday and got referred to the hospital for cancer tests. The hospital called me on Tuesday and I had my first meeting with the specialist the same week on Thursday...... Since then I have had almost weekly appointments at the hospital (handing over my MRI scan data from Bumrungrad, sorting out a UTI several times which delayed the biopsy, and then the biopsy last Saturday). The delays have been quite reasonable.

[quote] Meanwhile, Chiang Rai governor Puttipong Sirimat said yesterday (Monday) that he will not yet declare Mae Sai district a disaster zone, as proposed by the business sector and civic groups, for fear that the measure will have a negative impacts on a lot of people, but he will explore other options. [/quote] Pathetic!

[quote] ... I used to have a friend in his early 20's that was gay and once he entered his 30s is turned out he was straight now! ... [/quote] So slipping the pink oboe up his jacksie was just an accident then? ????

If you go back to the UK and declare that you intend to remain in the UK, then NHS treatment is free immediately. I returned to the UK (after 21 years living abroad) in February for prostate cancer diagnosis and possible treatment. I declared my circumstances to my new GP and the hospital where I'm having treatment and all accepted me without questions. Since returning to the UK, I am well into my cancer diagnosis (biopsy a few days ago). I also have been receiving free NHS prescriptions (antibiotics etc) since I'm over 60 years old, plus free eye test and cheap glasses at Vision Express, plus free Covid, flu and pneumonia vaccinations (I have a minor lung issue for many years), plus free colon cancer blood in poop test..... As I explained in another thread, my return was hastened by the refusal of my private health insurance to cover the cost of my prostate diagnosis and treatment. That international company refused to cover the costs because I had failed to declare my slightly enlarged prostate when I signed up to the health cover many years ago (I only knew about this BPH when a Thai doctor told me this after a DRE). No written diagnosis was ever given and no medication was needed at that time. Although BPH is an ailment in the prostate, it has zero relevance to prostate cancer. Nevertheless, this was the reason why my insurance company rejected my claim and also cancelled my insurance cover immediately! I am currently going through the process of claiming financial damages through the insurance ombudsman, but I will not be surprised if the ombusman sides with the insurance company. Therefore, I would strongly suggest that if you do apply for medical insurance, that you disclose every single ailment or condition that you might have had in your life, on the basis that no matter how minor that ailment might have been, your failure to disclose it could be a reason to reject any future claim. (Your insurance company might laugh at your list of bunion, benign mole removal, cosmetic minor surgery, broken arm 20 years ago etc etc, but at least they cannot claim that you hid these details from them!).

If you look at the fire map on a global basis, the picture is really shocking. Look at south-east Asia and compare it to the rest of the world (sorry, missed off west coast NA but not many fires there).

Same here. I topped up a couple of years ago at Class 2, despite having left the UK 21 years ago ???? I was able to top up for about 13 years or so, bringing my pension years to about 30 years.

Yes, my comment about 'good' bladder bacteria was tongue-in-cheek ???? I have yet another kind of antibiotic and indeed, I drink a lot of cranberry juice. So all is going well...

I have online lessons daily with my students in all regions of China, typically 10 lessons a day. Most students use Zoom, some use Zhumu, 1 uses Voov. None of them use a VPN and we have no issues about the internet connection. The only time that they would need to use a VPN is to access Youtube, Google Search etc which are blocked in China

In my case, I have absolutely no symptoms of a UTI. No stinging or burning when peeing. My only small issue is with BPH, but a daily Alfusolin tablet sorts that out. I did ask the doctor if something else could be causing a false positive on their UTI check but he said no. (Perhaps my bladder bacteria are 'good' bacteria like gut bacteria...). Anyway, I'm resting at home and drinking lots of water. The visible blood in my urine has all but vanished only 5 hours after the biopsy, and no problems with my rectum/#2s.

I do 2 types of teaching: Paid teaching at international or private schools, which is a public fact, and charitable endeavours to help with the education of those who are unable to attend government school because either their teachers have fled into rural regions to train as soldiers to fight the junta, or because the students are too scared to physically attend school. So I do not teach them 'in-class' (I used to do this in safer times). Rather, I have created an Android app which provides many educational resources to be downloaded and studied offline. So it is this app and any content that I prepare on my laptop that I wish to hide, as well as hiding my admin access to the website which is hosted right under the nose of the military in Yangon (makes for faster access within Myanmar or when the international internet connection is cut off). All files are backed up on a server outside Myanmar. So I use Tor and a VPN etc to hide my admin access when uploading new files etc.

Yes indeed, my NHS doctor told me that about 25% of the biopsies that he performs turn out to be benign. That would be a good result of course, but since my MRI scan in mid-December I have assumed the 'worse' and researched the treatment options. I have stated a number of times that I would opt for a radical prostatectomy. However, I can see now that the long-term survival stats for those who are treated with 'modern' radiotherapy is just as good as those who had surgery. So I need to wait for my results and then consult the doctors as to what will either 'cure' me or give me the longest survival time (which the stats suggest would typically be at least 20 years anyway!). Whatever, I'm OK with how things are going, no concerns ???? @Xylophone, interesting news article, although I'm not sure that I'd enjoy having 500 volts zapped up my perineum!! ????

Update: I had my biopsy today and now have to wait about 2-3 weeks for the result. 25 samples taken all within the prostate, (so the doctor seems confident that the small tumours have not spread outside my prostate). In fact, the biopsy was postponed for 2 weeks because I had a UTI which produced a very strong reading for general infection. So I was prescribed antibiotics for 2 weeks to clear the UTI. However, my pee sample today still gave a very strong indication of UTI infection, even though I have no outward symptoms. This is the same when I first started diagnosis in Bangkok last October. My pee samples all indicated a strong UTI without any outwards symptoms and the antibiotics didn't clear it. Hmm, not sure what to make of that. Anyway, I am back on antibiotics again to ensure that I don't get another infection from when they stuck 25 needles into my sensitive parts.....

If you follow a balanced diet, why would you need to take extra vitamins? I can understand that if you are vegan, you might be missing out on your daily recommended dosage of some vitamins, but that's the only reason I can think of.

Is there a clear bank record of the payments made by the husband to his wife's bank account? If not, then it's all just heresay....

Blackpool.