Totally OT, Prostate Cancer

PLCnovice61

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Hi Forum, so going by search this is a first thread re this subject, which is good but very sad in the same respect.
I am NOT looking for any sympathy, in the last 6 weeks l have been diagnosed with level 1 prostate cancer.
No real surprise to me as my dad had it and like him l hope it won't be the cause of my passing.

Willing to post more info (well l am going to a bit) if people are interested and of course PM will be answered.

I have been following my PSA for nearly 30 years (l am currently 59 years of age) and since my dad highlighted the men's silent killer out there (30 years ago) as a sales rep l used to engage customers in the discussion, but like most people the head in the sand is a great option.

So due to the demography in this forum (l'm guessing here, but doubt the are to many 20 year old answering questions) l am raising this so people don't get a nasty shock (unlike me) and find out about this killer which can be grabbed by the nuts ( watch out because they won't these if you take no notice, och big time) if you get an early warning that it is after you.

Regards Kevin
 
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Kevin, Thanks for sharing. My father had prostrate cancer but that's not what got him in the end. He had a lot of other issues and the Dr. always told us something else, likely his heart, would get him first.

Your message is very timely as I'm setting up my dr. visit for a check up today :).

Cheers
nOrM
 
Definitely thanks sharing, I did my blood work last week and waiting for the results (I think this week)

Lung cancer got my dad, he smoked for about 55 years but swears that was not the reason he go it :rolleyes: sure do miss our conversations

I am 53 and had a colonoscopy twice, not fun drinking the drink but you do what you have to do, they said I am good until 60 for that one again.
 
Been There

Prostate Cancer – My Individual Experience

Family History, my father was diagnosed with prostate cancer in his mid 60’s. He had a radical invasive surgical prostate removal via total abdominal surgical procedure. This was done at University of Michigan hospital early 1990’s. It was caught early, and no chemotherapy was involved. This invasive procedure will keep you out of the game for a month or more, and there is the use of catheters that get shoved up your main drain. I have not really drilled and asked what long term side effects he endures, but doctors will indicate that impotence and incontinence are HIGHLY probable after this radical procedure. Good news, my dad is now 90+ and alive and well enjoying over 30 years of retirement.


Once you are diagnosed, you can read dozens of books, and that many paradigms are to be considered, as you can live 30-40 years with higher PSA and prostate cancer without ANY corrective procedure But there is also a relatively NON-Invasive procedure with ROBOTIC prostate removal.

I opted for the robotic removal. It took a few hours in the operating room. It involves poking about (3) needle sizes holes in your abdomen and the prostate is removed. My doctor was amazing, and no NERVES were affected, so there is no impotence, not incontinence. I have No scars, and I was only off work for one week. WOW, modern medicine. I did have a catheter for a few days, but it was poked directly through my abdomen, and not shoved up the main drain. After 4 days, the doctor merely withdrew the catheter from my abdomen, and put a band-aid on the puncture. Then my normal plumbing became immediately functionable. I hope to retire in the next few years, and hope to live as-long as my father.


---------
Norm, I went to China in January, and so did my cell phone.
 
ndzied1, GT, Plastic, thanks for answering and also for putting out there some of your own personal history to the story.

I will suggest for anyone and any age to start getting PSA tests done so that you have some record of the levels so you can over the years have some idea in the direction your prostate is going. You don't have to have a family history of prostate cancer to get it, but unfortunately it is a good indication of what may happen.

Plastic, l am happy to hear of your great recovery particularly as the implication of surgery seem confronting. My dad always said he wished he hadn't reacted so quickly and had his prostate cut out, he had all the common complications after that.
Robotic assisted surgery wasn't available then, but have heard good results from it and you are fine example of it.

In my case l was looking at seeded radiation, the least of a bad bunch of procedures for dealing with PC.
I am now currently looking at PC with a different approach as l am changing from the private hospital to a large public hospital with guidance from the Australian Prostate Cancer Center. l will be going back to square one and looking at all options, which may included active surveillance (l really hope this is the case, but l might be dreaming).
Best wishes to all, particle anyone reading this who is going threw any health issues but don't wish to engage into it on the internet.
Regards Kevin
 
I will suggest for anyone and any age to start getting PSA tests done so that you have some record of the levels so you can over the years have some idea in the direction your prostate is going. You don't have to have a family history of prostate cancer to get it, but unfortunately it is a good indication of what may happen.

So I got in this am and checked the mail and my results were there, 1.31 is my number. My DR said the same thing we need to get a baseline and watch it.

My brother in law had it for about 10+ years... he did not had medical insurance so he went with natural treatments and he said it helped him if you want I can ask my sister for details of what he took and did

I will say a prayer for your health and your strength

20200623_061813.jpg
 
Sorry to here about your plight and hope all goes well.


Unfortunately the PSA test is not definitive either - it is a good guide but does not pick up the cancer 100% of the time. Be careful. An ultra sound can also be utilised to check the size of the prostrate to see if it is enlarged. The only known fail safe test as far as I am aware is a biopsy and I am not sure if that is 100% either.



My brother in law was diagnosed years ago and because he was 'the Italian Stallion' he decided to seek out alternate therapies - he would not have any thought in his head about possibly becoming impotent.
Seeds, organic food, read a lot of 'Dr Google' where people had been 'cured' with decidedly dodgy treatments - he even went overseas for dodgy therapies.


Now passed - the last time I saw him a couple of days before he died all he could say to me was I wish I had the operation and chemo - bit late - he would not take notice of any of us.
 
GT l am happy for you re PSA readings and concur with you Dr about getting a base line, as l have been for 30 years. Your PSA test is certainly in the best area, alas not for me, mine is currently 4.8, thanks you for your kind thoughts. If l go on active surveillance l may follow up your suggestion re alternatives, l have of course researched this, but it can be a bit like Russian roulette. A friends dad had a PSA of 300 and he zeroed it with herbs, but zeroing your PSA in itself doesn't mean you don't have cancer.

BobB, thanks also for your thoughts, in my case l have had a biopsy and it is Gleason score 3 + 3 = 6. For the lucky ones that don't need to know about this, it seems pretty basic maths, but when you go to the next level 3+4 =7 or 4+3=7 you want the first 7 sum, as the first # is how aggressive the majority of the samples are, the second # is the aggressiveness of the minority.
Gleason 6 is the start of the readings realistically as #'s 1, 2 aren't diagnosed so hence Level 1 Cancer.
There goes your medical lesson for the day.

Yes also re PSA testing, it is only an indication and as you rightly put it is not definitive 1 way or the other, it is thou the most common and is a non evasive test, with high probability on the result.

I agree re impotence, life is more important to most people as your brother in law found.
I like the saying, "No one on there death bed ever said l wish l had spent more time at work"

As l stated l started this thread not for sympathy (but it does help), my thread was to open anyone eyes that may have them shut thinking my symptoms will just go away, so if it saves 1 life, this thread has done it's job
 
I appreciate you started the thread - men do not talk about this enough - they are just blokey and want to ignore their health. There are often warning signs for illness and probably 80% of the men I know ignore the signs.
 
I agree BobB and will bump this thread every now and again in the hope it raising some awareness to Prostate Cancer.
All other major health concerns (subject to Forum Rules) l think should be highlighted, as this Forum is a great demographic for men's issues l would imagine.
 
There are often warning signs for illness and probably 80% of the men I know ignore the signs.

Very sad and true

A little over a year before my dad's passing he told me that he would like to stop smoking and would like to give e cigarettes a try, I told him no problem, I would not buy him cigarettes but I would have no problem helping him to try and quit.... come to find out in the end at that time (and not telling anyone) thats when he started coughing up blood and did not tell my mother, he thought if he quit he would be OK, I have no idea if it would of helped to go to the doctor as soon as he saw the blood the first time, but I know by the time he told someone it was way to late.

I try and go to the doctors once a year just for blood work and a short conversation about anything thats changed.

Please update us on how you are doing and what you are doing in the future Kevin
 
Hi all, l have a tele conference with the specialists on Fri 3/7/2020 so will have more understanding in which direction my PC will go.
One thing that is different from the last specialist is this group also use a clinical psychologist to access how you are going, which l think is an added plus.

Down at this end of the world, Australia and New Zealand have great FREE public Health, free is a bit of a misnomer, as our tax rates are nearing 50% when earning $180k.
We also give money to the unemployed and age pensions so as a society we look after the not so fortunate (us poor old tax payers).

GT, so down here, unlike your brother in law unfortunately, not having the money for procedures, isn't a reason to die from cancer ( the more common ones).

I will keep you posted, as it's a means of bumping this thread back up, so giving it a wider audience and may just trigger someone to follow up on there health.

p/s as an aside, skin cancer is one of the biggest killers, easily stopped in it's tracks with early detection, by some thing even easier than a blood test, just look at your skin and get it cut out if it looks dodgy, this is coming from experience as l had a melanoma cut out 20+ years ago.
 
Not sorry for resurrecting this thread. :)


Thanks for the reminder that these things need checked.
 
Thanks for bumping this as I missed it first time around.

I had a physical last month and my Dr ordered the Cologuard test kit as part of this. I did my due diligence and mailed it back in. Ten days later I get a call saying I had tested positive for colon cancer. They scheduled a Colonoscopy right away.

After the procedure the Dr said he only found 1 small polyp and would send it off for testing. Just last week I got the call saying it was benign. At 53 years old it wasn't something I ever thought about and will keep on top of this every 5 years as suggested by Dr.

As Bob said men don't talk about these things and it has a tendency to sneak up on you. Hopefully a thread like this will get some to thinking about it and we'll quit being so stubborn.
 
Although this does not appear to be that important in our busy life, it should be our first concern. Without our health we will struggle to have a happy life.

10 years ago, at the age of 53 I had a stroke while teaching a ControlLogix class in Auburn, WA for the Boeing company. It took almost 6 years to recover enough that I could drive and work again. I now monitor my health very closely and visit the doctor on a regular basis.

Next week I will turn 63 and I am doing well. I am more active and do my best to eliminate stress in my life. Pay attention to the signals and be proactive for your family and you.

So please, as others have stated, do not ignore any health issues and get them checked out.
 

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