What Would You Do If You Had Prostate Cancer

[rocky123]

I am a 52 yo fitness instructer and went for a routine health check. They found my psa to be 16. After a biop the results were right side clear, left side 2 cores 5%, volume 24.6cc. Gleason 3+3, MRI and Bone scan clear, I have no symptems.

I have a younger partner and a great and active life. Do I realy need to go ahead with treatment that will stop me enjoying my life ?? I believe I will not die from PC and treatment will wreck my whole life. I would rather another 10 good years than the posibility of a bag on my hip and a limp dick plus all the treatment implications.

[rixalex]

Can't offer any advice - just wanted to say i'm sorry for your bad news. Wish you all the best, whatever you decide to do about treatment.

[fremmel]

52 seems pretty young for a relatively high PSA. How long did it take to get that high? I.e., If your last check was 1 year ago and it was normal then it might indicate an aggressive cancer that needs to be treated quickly. Check with doctors other than surgeons, such as radiation oncologists. There are treatment options that have a fairly low risk of complications. As I said in an earlier post, my treatment went fine and the minimal side effects ended when I stopped taking the hormones. If you're absolutely opposed to treating it then probably just monitor your PSA frequently to see if it continues to climb and decide from there. Talk to enough doctors and tell them your concerns until you find one you're comfortable with and have him monitor it.

I hesitate to mention this because you're obviously, and naturally, stressed out about this already but it's not something that can be ignored. I had a friend who was very fit, worked out everyday with heavy weights, He was diagnosed with prostate cancer and it took less than a year to metastasize and take his life. If you don't want to treat it at least make sure it's the normal slow growing type and not an aggressive one.

Good luck.

[Beardog]

Usually Prostrate cancer occurs in older age brackets, as it is a very slow growing cancer if your in your late 60's-70's & are diagnosed with it you can gamble if it is it is worth it. 16 is about twice over the highest average so it might be worth thinking about keeping it in check or treating it. If you got it early, it won't be as bad to deal with. My dad's Dr. at Kaiser in California knew he had it for 4 years before letting him know. He went from stage 2 to stage 3 until he found out. It would have been a cakewalk to take care of early with minor radiation rods implanted around the area. Since he was so late on getting treatment he had to go for the full course of radiation (as bad as chemotherapy) & now he is totally messed up.

Maybe Sheryl will pop on site & give you some valuable info.

One way or another to ignore the problem it can go to worse case scenario- as Prostrate cancer never just goes away.

Check what your physician recommends(I am sure with a double digit psa they probably feel it is time)

it is your decision to deal with it as you wish & sometimes you can safely wait prostrate out. It will get worst over the years.

Another buddy can't urinate well anymore & will have to do something soon.

I am the same age & was informed in 1984 I got tainted blood in a workmans comp injury when I had a transfusion & got Hepatitis C & have decided to go holistic opposed to the severe drug treatment. It is a crapshoot on gambling with your health,

so best to find out exactly how bad they think it is & go from there. Sounds like you are at least testing so you can make a decision one way or another.

I am sorry to hear about your health & hope you can get it under control.

Beardog

Edited July 11, 2008 by Beardog

[glyph]

"Do I realy need to go ahead with treatment that will stop me enjoying my life ?? "

No, of course not. You can ignore the cancer, and you won't have to worry about the next ten years.

I'm not sure why you believe you'll have to wear a bag on your hip, or have ED problems. Here's a hint: if you think you're getting better advice form a bunch of strangers than from your own doctor, find another doctor.

[Crushdepth]

Do I realy need to go ahead with treatment that will stop me enjoying my life ?? I believe I will not die from PC and treatment will wreck my whole life. I would rather another 10 good years than the posibility of a bag on my hip and a limp dick plus all the treatment implications.

You *definitely* can die from prostate cancer - in my family there has been one death and one very near miss, both in the <60 age bracket. But that doesn't mean it's all doom and gloom. Go get some solid advice from some reputable specialists (more than one!) on the treatment and its implications and do it EARLY. If you deal with it now you may well find that the treatment options and impact are not as bad as you think. The longer you leave it the less options you will have. Good luck.

[tracker]

The biggest mistake you can make is follow the modern day treatment. It's to make you come back. They have no concern for your health, only for your financial contribution to the health corporations.

If you doubt about what i say, I suggest some time online and search for treatments and outcomes. Read multiple sources. Check alternative treatments which are cheap and healthy (not to find in any hospital!).

Since you have the signs, prepare also to make major adjustments in your diet (assuming that you are already active as indicated), otherwise it will come back.

Again, inform yourself. Do not rely only on doctors/hospitals. They make money with selling you treatments and medicine, not making you better.

As a starter, check out the fact that chemo itself creates cancer....

Wish you the best for your health and search for good information.

[Gary A]

A friend of mine was diagnosed with prostate cancer. He was 70 years old and he told me that all his parts were still working and he intended to die that way. It only took about six months. It's a tough decision but at 52 years old, I'd choose not to die.

[PattayaParent]

A mate of mine was diagnosed with prostate cancer some 8 years ago.

He had an operation to remove it and has been fine since, no coloscopy bag or vitamin V required.

[Tolley]

Check this link out and do a bit of online investigation http://www.prostate90.com/index.html

You could probably easily afford to try alternative methods for a few months and if they dont work reassess your options.

[Lost in LOS]

my European friend had a psa count off the chart, they gave him a month or so to live when diagnosed in europe. he read everything he could on the net, took some hormone shots in Germany, had the spot radiation in the US [no chemo] and did extreme vegetable and fruit drink fasts, hardly ate any meat, only fish and vegetables since then. that was about 10 years ago and he is looking good last time i saw him

[cathyy]

The OP is assuming he has 10 years if he leaves the cancer untreated, and that's a faulty assumption. Not all prostate cancers are slow-growing. Prostate cancers can metastasize early and widely, usually to the bone, which is virtually untreatable. The OP is free to decline treatment. It is, after all, his life. He is well-advised by others here to find out what his treatment options are for both now and later if the first treatment fails. Early treatment is the best survival strategy, but the OP seems less interested in survival than the potential -but not absolutely certain- side effects of surgery, and that before he even knows if surgery is his best option for treatment. He may indeed have a slow-growing variety for which "watchful waiting" is the preferred treatment.

While a strict vegan diet can reduce the rate at which the PSA will increase, it doesn't make the cancer go away. It can definitely help lengthen life, though.

[cloudhopper]

Since I was a surgeon, I am biased toward surgical treatment and still believe it's the best initial approach to solid tumors and it's what I would personally do. I don't know if it's available in LOS, but the new DaVinci robot surgical system in the US has enjoyed great success in prostate tumor removal with minimal post op side effects.

[farangene]

.....I don't know if it's available in LOS, but the new DaVinci robot surgical system in the US has enjoyed great success in prostate tumor removal with minimal post op side effects.

Davinci is available at Bangkok Hosp and Bumrungrad. Might be in other ones as well.

[padfoot]

Six and a half years ago I was diagnosed with prostate cancer. I was 53 and the cancer was caught at an early stage. I had the brachy therapy, radiation seeds. I have been cancer free since then. I had few problems in the first few months with how often I urinated, but since then I have had no problems. I have also maintained an active sex life: which is important to me. I feel I was lucky to catch this early. I have no regrets with treatment option I chose. I talked to several doctors and many people who had been through many different kinds of cancer. I find that I have a new perspective on life. I do appreciate it more than I use to, much more. I have met several men who went through the seed therapy in their early fifties, like I did, and they are all happy with the results.

[Prakanong]

Sorry to hear about your situation - you have good advice here but please talk to a few Dr's and not just in Thailand about your options and possible adverse effects

I have a friend who in Thailand had the wrong advice given to them about treatment options for this and even the diagnostic tests werec not fully explored but you seem to have had the bone scans etc

When I mentioned this to two colleagues about my friend who are both Oncologists who I work and eat with they said to me get him onto a plane to Singapore for the gold standard treatment if he can afford it - he went to the UK instead.

[Trevor]

http://www.healingcancernaturally.com/mms-...-treatment.html

http://phaelosopher.wordpress.com/2007/11/...ew-forthcoming/

You MUST get started on MMS straight away. Numerous benefits apart from curing cancer. I've been taking it for over a month as a general tonic and it's perfectly safe, although a little unpleasant to drink (but not as bad as chemo or radiation). Buy via mail order from abroad.

http://cgi.ebay.com/MMS-MIRACLE-MINERAL-SU...807111729r25362

It will also help to get yourself onto a raw, or 90% raw-food diet, including raw eggs and fish. See http://www.wewant2live.com and http://www.primaldiet.com .

You CAN self-cure. Don't hand yourself into the arms of the medical mafia on a platter to make things even worse.

Edited July 13, 2008 by Trevor

[jetjock]

There is an excellent of curing prostate cancer if caught in the early stages. With your gleason score and figures there is still a good chance that your are still in the early stages. My best suggestion to do not listen to the holistic nuts on this forum but instead find the best doctors in your area that specialize in prostate cancer and listen to what they have to offer. A nerve sparing radical prostatectomy is still considered by most doctors to be the gold standard (mainly due to it having been the most time tested proven procedure) however external beam radiation and radioactive seeding are perhaps just as good as they also have a similar cure rate but have not been quite as time tested as the surgical option. All procedures have varying degrees of the risk of side effects such as incontinence and impotence however with modern medical procedures and a good doctor those side effects are minimized. I have several friends that had radical prostatectomies and are now cancer free and have suffered no long term side effects. Just remember that once the prostate cancer penetrates the capsule it becomes a whole different ball game. My father was someone that waited too long before seeing a doctor and once he was diagnosed he was dead from advanced prostate cancer within a year. Good luck as your chances are excellent with proper treatment and early detection.

[tracker]

tsk, tsk tsk...., mr jetjocker:

"My best suggestion to do not listen to the holistic nuts on this forum"

So much to learn yet........

[jetjock]

tsk, tsk tsk...., mr jetjocker:

"My best suggestion to do not listen to the holistic nuts on this forum"

So much to learn yet........

Tracker, Perhaps you are correct and I should not have been so harsh as to use the words 'holistic nuts' however unfortunately I have learned about holistic medicine from watching one of my mates die because he did not seek medical treatment for a totally curable ailment by medical practice but instead opted to try a holistic cure which did not work. Please do not misunderstand me, however, since I do believe that there is a place for holistic medicine in the attempted treatment of certain ailments that would not be critical if they do not succeed and there is still time left for proper medical treatment to be pursued if they do not work. When it comes to a matter of life or death as is the case of prostate cancer, I think it is reckless for anyone to suggest holistic cures to be tried in place of proper medical treatment. I see nothing wrong if someone chooses to try holistic practices in addition to proper medical treatment however for anyone to suggest that anyone enter into holistic treatment rather than proper medical treatment for something that can be time sensitive like prostate cancer that can lead to death is IMHO totally irresponsible. If someone wants to risk their own life by trying holistic cures that are not backed by medical scientific that is of course their own business but for anyone to suggest these type of unscientific cures to another individual in place of medical treatment seems to be not in the best interest of that individual as it could cost them their life.

[tracker]

Jetjock,

It's understandable how you react, however, in a forum, your words are saved and can be read for years by others. It is different than a face to face conversation... A lot of people seem to forget that.

I have a story like yours, but the outcome is opposite. My sister has now, in a 4 year timespan, had her cancer/radiation/chemo/clean/re-occurence/chemo ..... and after the six treatments of chemo this year, her bodily functions are failing.

Stories of people are just that... stories. I've done my research since 4 years (since my sister was diagnosed with cancer) and call myself "informed" today. That is, I'm informed to myself, for myself.

The result of this is, that if I would be diagnosed with cancer today, I would be as worried as I would be if I found out I caught a cold.

I read a lot of books, internet forums about people curing themselves, and even ordered books through the internet which are over 80 years old and written by doctors (basically, 99.99% of everything written after 1940 is influenced by big pharma).

You will understand, that with my point of view, if I read here that someone claims that the "doctors" are the best and only smart thing to do, I have to inform other readers that that should be a decision they should take after informing themselves more.

As a sidenote: cancercells are in everyone. The lifestyle (food, environment, stress etc.) makes them active and reversal of that lifestyle can also make them inactive. It's the willingness of the person that counts in these cases (take my sister's point of view "I just want my old cozy life back" is gonna kill her, and she stuck to it until a couple of weeks ago. She's now on a plant based cure... and i am praying for her every day).

Good luck with you finding the correct information.

[geriatrickid]

The biggest mistake you can make is follow the modern day treatment. It's to make you come back. They have no concern for your health, only for your financial contribution to the health corporations.

I believe the above to be an inappropriate and irresponsible statement. If you want to tell someone to go and die, you just did. Specific significant test results were given and they cannot be ignored.

The good news of the biopsy is that you do have time. Time to discuss and explore options with health care providers. Downside is that 3+3 = 6 out of a total of 10. The higher the Gleason, the more difficult the case. I have never done a Gleason, but I do know that this one of the more difficult assessments. I've been told that some pathologists have a difficult time seeing the differences between the 3s and 4s and can give the attending physician inaccurate test results. However, when you get into the danger zone, where you are now, the condition will most likely get worse, not better. Hence, it is vital you choose a treatment as soon as possible.

Bearing in mind that I have no surgical experience, I would hesitate on the surgery until the radiation option was explored. If the cancer is localized then this may be worthwhile.

Keep in mind, that if the condition progresses, sooner or later there will be some surgery because they are going to have to go and get the pelvic lymph nodes. Don't be surprised if you are sent back for another biopsy. Urologists try to be especially certain.

Bottom line, please see the urologist asap and discuss your concerns, fears etc. He or she will have heard it all before and will be able to guide you through this. If you don't like what you hear, see another urologist. If you get a 2nd opinion, consider a different hospital with different treatment practices. Sometimes a different perspective helps.

[nidhogg]

I am a 52 yo fitness instructer and went for a routine health check. They found my psa to be 16. After a biop the results were right side clear, left side 2 cores 5%, volume 24.6cc. Gleason 3+3, MRI and Bone scan clear, I have no symptems.

I have a younger partner and a great and active life. Do I realy need to go ahead with treatment that will stop me enjoying my life ?? I believe I will not die from PC and treatment will wreck my whole life. I would rather another 10 good years than the posibility of a bag on my hip and a limp dick plus all the treatment implications.

There is an old adage about prostate cancer : more men die with prostate cance than from prostate cancer.

However, that being said it really applies to older men, and you are fairly young, and with a fairly high PSA.

Prostate cancer is very, very variable, and can have totally different courses in different people. Some people can be diagnosed and live quite happily for 10 to 15 years with no treatment. Others die relatively quickly despite multiple treatment options.

So my two satangs worth:

1. educate yourself. What is the disease, what do your 'scores" mean (look up "Partin tables"), what are the possible treatment options - what are their out comes - what are their outcomes with your stage of the disease (different things).

2. "vet" sites to makesure you are getting the best advice (if the only advice is drinking raw carrot juice for 6 months only - move on).

3. Look for self help groups as they are the ones most in the know.

4. Find a decent specialist doctor that you can trust and have this discussion, raising the same questions with him.

5. get your biopsy slides re-reviewed by a diffferent pathologist - even if you have to arrange for them to be sent to US or the like.

Bottom line is -its your disease - and your life. You need to get up to speed on it.

good luck

[nidhogg]

Since I was a surgeon,

Trees by any chance?

[Crushdepth]

The biggest mistake you can make is follow the modern day treatment. It's to make you come back. They have no concern for your health, only for your financial contribution to the health corporations.

I should know better, but really I'm just amazed that some people seriously entertain such views in this day and age.

[mommysboy]

The biggest mistake you can make is follow the modern day treatment. It's to make you come back. They have no concern for your health, only for your financial contribution to the health corporations.

I should know better, but really I'm just amazed that some people seriously entertain such views in this day and age.

Agreed in this instance. This is a wholly treatable and curable form of cancer.

End of..

[tracker]

If you choose to ignore my warning. Ignore it. Go and stick your head in the sand. For interested and worried people:

Don't believe me, do your own research. You can ask your doctor, but compare their answers with other sources too.

quote

"I should know better, but really I'm just amazed that some people seriously entertain such views in this day and age"

This actually could be a quote of mine to you, who blindly follow the doctors, hospitals and pharma's advice.

You will find out after the sand from the ground falls out of your ears and eyes, and probably after loosing a loved one.... I truly hope that you do not have to go through that.

[deejah]

as long as the status quo remains

that big biz both pharmacy and medicine

(society too)

focuses on treatment verses prevention

it will continue to be a profit making enterprise that often exploits the patient

a very worthwhile debate

[cloudhopper]

Since I was a surgeon,

Trees by any chance?

Barber

[Samuian]

A mate of mine was diagnosed with prostate cancer some 8 years ago.

He had an operation to remove it and has been fine since, no coloscopy bag or vitamin V required.

I sign that!

My friend was in the same age bracket, mid 50ties, he found out himself, first problems letting urin, then blood, doctor here "tipped" on stones... then kidney probs...then very painful urinating, till he had to get a katheder, he went to Taksin Hospital Surat and there they found out, was in it's early stages got "the job done" in Bangkok (special cancer clinic) and is fine since!

But yes, I agree find first class medical advice first - don't mess around!

Had a gf she cam down with breast cancer, 6 months after diagnosis I lit the fire in the tempel!

very sorry.. but... get an experts advice!