Paul Posted May 27, 2013 Share Posted May 27, 2013 Hi all My story is going on this post as a quick overview and account from the first diagnosis of Prostate cancer to the present In the hope that others may see similarities and possibly help others One good bit of advice is DONT PANIC just make a decision thats best suited for your stage, get a second opinion if needed and follow through It was December 2010, just at my 51st birthday my wife insisted I get a check up with the doctor I protested and made the point that I don't get sick, I don't take any prescribed medications, and in fact I haven't been to the doctor for about 12 years ( hence the title of my post ) Last time I visited the doctor was for a bone fracture in the hand. It's true I simply don't get sick, I have a physical job that keeps me fit and trim, I am 3/4 vegetarian, don't drink except a glass of beer on special occasions ect That equates to a healthy lifestyle by anyone's standards The physical or check up consisted of a blood test and a follow up appointment to evaluate the findings Dr said PSA level looks high Paul but I don't think it's an issue with you ? But just in case I better send you to a specialist Specialist appointment A poke up the rectum and the answer was - Paul just by the feel of it you have an 80% chance you have prostrate cancer but will need to do a biopsy Biopsy showed that I had a 3+4=7 - T2 on the Gleason scale and he gave me many options to consider Christmas was a few days away but I found it more comforting to tell the family over holding the news inside me I returned to the specialist with a list of what I wanted 1) I want to save my nerves if possible 2) I want a fall back if needed in the future 3) I want the procedure ( irrespective of pain ) that gives me the longest observed success rate 4 ) I don't like radiation if I can avoid it He advised me and referred me to a another specialist of the Robotic Prostatectomy procedure I did that and booked in the operation for January 2011 This is the funny bit, my operation was scheduled to be done and the Brisbane floods were in full swing. My operation had to be rescheduled for a week later due to The Wesley Hospital being cut off Procedure done on a Da Vinci robot with all my requests achieved, recovery was a fast but not completely pain free 6 weeks Lots of walking as therapy around the neighbourhood gave me a pleasant feeling of being alive And the reason for that was that I had a phone all from the specialist to inform me that the post operation biopsy came back as a 4+5=9 T3 on the Gleason Scale The next hurdle was to become continent again that took 2 years and only archiving 80% At this time on my last follow up with the specialist my PSA started to rise again and I was referred to a radiation specialist in prostrate oncology Advice was get a sling procedure to be 100% continent and return 4 months after the operation Also in the meantime I was prescribed 2 doses of a hormone therapy capsule that is inserted under ones skin and slow releases over 3 months I think it was Zoladex Sling procedure was booked in and done within 3 weeks with a successful and desired result achieved I am 100% dry hooray Last PSA test, only a few weeks ago has shown that its now 0.1 or negligible due to the hormone therapy another hooray That brings us to the present - This Thursday I am starting on a seven week radiation therapy programme to eradicate any stubborn cancer cells that refuse to give up Well the little buggers won't get a chance to regroup if I have anything to do with it Back soon with an update on the current treatment Be positive and in control - think like a general in the battlefield Regards Paul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Posted August 14, 2013 Author Share Posted August 14, 2013 A follow up if I may You have read my first post (above) Recap Zoladex 3 month strength X 2 injections was prescribed to lower my tostestorone and starve the cancer of its nutrition While the Zoladex was doing its job I was also directed to install a sling device to stop my incontinence problem of 2 years as the radiation treatment could make it worse This sling device requires min of 4 months to fully heal prior to any External Beam Radiation Treatment All recommendations were duly followed The Zoladex had done its job as my last PSA blood test showed 0.001 or as the specialist described it as negligible At the start of my Radiation treatment I had an overlap of the Zoladex of approx 5 weeks The treatment consisted of 34 sessions 5 days a week, specially tailored to my prostate I was warned of symptoms to the treatment - however I sailed through them without to much discomfort At this point I am classed as in remission and follow up blood tests will be conducted on regular intervals Follow up with specialists is in a few months Until then Be positive and in control - think like a general in the battlefield Regards Paul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Posted March 22, 2014 Author Share Posted March 22, 2014 Another quick and short update Enjoying the dry life as the sling operation has been a complete success The sling procedure takes many months to completely heal as nerves take time to repair themselves After the hormone treatment it has taken over six months to get my labido back But I feel that starving the cancer for a little longer after radiation treatment is a good thing The good news Having had a few blood blood tests since the radiation treatment I am happy to report that all tests came back as " negligible " Next round of tests and specialist visit is in June Until next time Be positive and in control - think like a general in the battlefield Regards Paul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nev Black Posted March 22, 2014 Share Posted March 22, 2014 Great to hear the good news continues Paul, and may it continue long into the future. I have a sling and it works wonderfully well for me also. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popeye Posted March 24, 2014 Share Posted March 24, 2014 Bloody Skites Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul Posted June 25, 2014 Author Share Posted June 25, 2014 Great to hear the good news continues Paul, and may it continue long into the future. I have a sling and it works wonderfully well for me also. Although I have had pretty much instant results from the sling procedure healing pain was a long process Now fully recovered with all nerve areas healed I am happy with the final result as it's given me so much freedom and to be simply normal I am a bit of an inventor at heart To that end I have come up with an internal sphincter design that will be easier to install and alleviate the need to go through bone to anchor Ideally I want someone to take on and develop the design with my help and a percentage of the proceeds from sales if it gets that far to go towards prostate cancer research Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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