The "New" Prostate Cancer InfoLink Social Network
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Amy Foote
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- Todd, NC
- United States
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- Have you been diagnosed with prostate cancer?
- No
- What brings you to the New Prostate Cancer InfoLink social network?
- Husband newly diagnosed
- About Me:
- My husband was recently diagnosed with PC. Looking for support.
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Comment Wall (7 comments)
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Larry
Thanks for the response. You and Stephen have very interesting careers going. Supplements and herbs are the ongoing study for PCa patients. What are you taking is our question to one another? Constantly, so now maybe we shall be inquiring of you. Mike gave a great summary of what may be going on PCa wise. Take your time and do some doctor shopping and consultation. Go to the other site as Mike suggested and take a look at some of your options. Don't have to rush into things as the whole treatment process is wide open to Stephen. It is a scary thing to be diagnosed so support from many places is a must. This site is a great place for info and new friends. Also NC has some very actice support organization as well. Go to the www.ustoo.com site and ask where the NC support groups are also. Keep us updated on his CT as wel. Will keep your whole family in our thoughts. Georgel
I will let Angela and George know that you have answered their questions. When you want to leave an answer for a message someone leaves for you, click on the box below their message that says "Comment Back", then you get taken to their page and you can leave a message specifically for them.
So ... now for the god news. Your husband appears to have early stage, low risk prostate cancer. Almost any form of treatment would probably work well for him. And if he's expecting to live into his 80s and see a couple of grandkids, then treatment is probably better than no treatment, but active surveillance is a potentially appropriate option, at least for a while (see below).
I have put your husband's numbers through the Kattan pre-treatment nomogram and get the following data:
-- The probability that his cancer is organ-confined is 85%.
-- The probability of progression-free survival 10 years after surgery would be 95%
-- The probability of progression-free survival 5 years after brachytherapy would be 85%.
-- The probability that he has truly indolent disease, however, is only 15%.
The single most important thing for you and your husband to understand is that, as you think about treatment, the skill and experience of the surgeon or the radiation oncologist is critical to getting the best possible outcome. You want to get treatment from someone who really specializes in prostate cancer treatment (whatever form of treatment you decide on).
Have a look at the articles on how to pick a surgeon and how to pick a radiation oncologist. And don't be shy about getting second and third opinions to be sure about what you want to do. Tell your husband I said that his prostate is the equivalent of the sports car every man secretly dreams of owning (Lamborghini, Aston Martin, Shelby Cobra, whatever). You don't get a car like that serviced at Joe's Garage on the corner. You take it to a specialist. He should do the same with his prostate.
You also need to appreciate that your husband's ability to "perform" sexually is liable to be affected to some extent by almost any form of treatment -- which is one reason that active surveillance may be a good idea (at least for a little while). That's something for discussion between the two of you and your doctors.
If you nave other specific questions, please feel able to ask. We ain't shy about any of this!
Mike
Ok, my husband is 65 with the exception of having early stage emphysema he is otherwise healthy, ideal weight, good bp, cholesterol etc .
We have 4 children ages 22, 16, 14, and 11. We live in the beautiful Blue Ridge mountains of NC.
Stephen is quite a bit older than me, which puts him in an unusual bracket. We have children at home still, so retirement is a ways off. My husband is a studio musician, pianist and retired music teacher. I am studying to become a holistic health practitioner, nutritional consultant and master herbalist.
We have been married for almost 20 years. I am the one who usually is dealing with health challenges. Due to numerous blood transfusions, I found out about 7 years ago that I have hepatitis c, and we have recently learned that our 16 year old son has it as well, so it has been a very trying time for us.
We are just coming out of the shock of that whole ordeal and now this!
Ok so now on to what we know so far.
Like I said dh is 65, PSA 6-6.5, Gleason 6 (3+3) Biopsy revealed the cancer is 6% in only his upper left quadrant. Benign all the other 5 sections. He is scheduled for a CT scan in two weeks. What brought him to the dr was he had been suffering from ED that was getting progressively worse. Cialis has helped with that problem.
His father had his prostate removed in his late 60's but we dont know why, as that generation usually kept these things to themselves.
Thank you both for the warm welcome. Most of my friends have husbands closer to their age (40's) and I do feel very alone in this.
Amy
Glad you found us. Follow Angela's led and insert the PCa data so we can assist in reaching out to you both. A Diagnose of PCa is a difficlt time but hang in there and update us asap. Welcome, lots of support, info and friends here. We are with you for sure. George