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John Stankus
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- Have you been diagnosed with prostate cancer?
- Yes
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- About Me:
- 48 y/o male diagnoised w/ PC. Chief of Maintenance for a Fire Department w/ 2 children, 28 yo son and 23 yo daughter, & 2 - 4 yo grandsons. Been a Heavy Equipment Mechanic for over 30+ years and was just recently awarded Emergency Vehicle Technician of the Year for 2007 Nationationly. Along w/ being a mechanic, I'm also well versed as a EMT, IV Tech, and Professional Photographer.
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47 weeks post surgery feeling a little better each day and still not liking the side effects associated with the ADT therapy. The Effexor prescription appears to be helping with the hot flashes some what, but I am still an emotional basket case because of the hormones. Trying to deal with the hormones to the best of my abilities. Taking the Casodex pill on a daily basis is still a concern of mine but I’m obeying the doctor’s orders at this point in time.
I’ve been out of touch with everyone for awhile because of a variety of reasons. The first reason is that I have been very wrapped up with my new position at work. Second reason is I am very grateful that I made it this far with this journey and have tried to ignore the cancer thing but it isn’t working very well because things keep popping up.
Two months ago I had my third Lupron injection which was so wonderful. Now it is almost time for my next Lupron injection and I am really looking forward to this day. It is loads of fun receiving the concoction of drugs with a good size needle for lasting memories. The Oncologist is stating to me that I will probably be on this therapy program for ADT at least 2+years or until the PSA becomes undetectable.
Eleven months post surgery and my PSA is 0.21 ng/mL which is a whole lot better than the last test of 8.15 ng/mL. The thoughts are positive so far and hopefully the PSA will continue to drop out of site. I’m not looking forward to the ADT therapy for the next 2 years, especially with the side effects associated, with it. Hopefully the PSA will continue to decline and become undetectable so that I can discontinue the ADT and go on with life.
Every day that I wake up and take a breath is a good day for me. Thinking back it has almost been a year since surgery and a little over a year since initial diagnosis.
Thirteen weeks ago, I completed my 36 sessions of Radiation therapy. What a relief completing this therapy. Plenty of side effects associated with the Radiation Therapy and I am patiently working through each day for encouragement that will help the healing process to continue.
The diet change since the radiation therapy has been very interesting. Reintroducing different foods that I had to cut out during the Radiation therapy has been a challenge. Each day the digestive system shows signs that it is still in the healing mode from Radiation therapy. After 3 months I’m still waiting to see what will heal from the Radiation therapy.
In a couple of weeks I go back to the Radiologist for a check up and PSA test. Hopefully the PSA results will drop or be undetectable.
The bladder is still requiring the use of pads daily. I am seeing continued improvement daily compared to what it was following the surgery. Trying to keep up the kegels exercises and hoping for the best.
The ED issues are still present but showing some progress. We have tried a variety of things some with disappointment and others with very happy times.
Still experiencing soreness around the incision area from the Radical Prosectomy and puffy in other areas. In which I think is fluid retention from the surgery and Radiation treatments. Occasionally I get internal pains which last a short time then go away varying in intensity. Not sure what they are but, I am assuming that this is just part of the internal healing process.
The taste buds are getting back to normal, but I have still found McDonald’s French fries just don’t taste well anymore. It’s really weird, but true; I just can’t eat McDonald’s French fries anymore, but will eat French fries from other restaurants.
The emotions are still messed up from the cancer but are better than when I was first diagnosed with the PCa. This PCa journey has made me really think about what is truly important in this life and what isn’t. Each day I wake up and see the sun rising is a good day for me. Being with my family and above the dirt is also very good for me.
My wife has been a huge support for me during these challenging times in my life. She is a very strong and loving person that really helps me get through this part of life. Once you get the cancer it seems like it becomes the controller of your life unless you try to prove it differently.
I feel so fortunate receiving the Professional and advanced medical care from all of the Doctors, Nurses, and others at the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance and the University of Washington Hospital. Without them, I am not sure where this journey would have taken me and what condition I might have been in. The professionals at SCCA and U of W have helped make my cancer journey more comfortable and have had a huge influence with my continued healing progression.
God Bless and Peace be with you.
John Stankus
I saw the message you left for Angela, and I am so pleased to see that you seem to be doing pretty well -- even though you'd rather never have had to "join the club" in the first place. Congratulations on your upcoming anniversaries!
:O)
Mike
Currently I’m 25 weeks post surgery and not really liking the side effects associated with the ADT therapy. The ADT therapy is causing me to have multiple hot flashes through out the day at any time. When the weather is warm outside it is very uncomfortable to deal with. Since I’ve been a sun worshiper, having these side effects real makes me mad. At times, I’m so emotional because of the hormones, it’s crazy. Other times, I get the feeling that I’m this huge basket case. I tell people to just think of me as this huge hormone. Hopefully the treatment isn’t forever and this is just a temporary thing. Taking the Casodex on a daily basis is scary not really knowing what the long term effects will be.
In a week I go back in for my second Lupron injection that lasts for three months, which should be loads of fun. The doctors are still telling me that I will probably be in this therapy program for at least 2-3 years. I’m really not looking forward to the ADT therapy for that long, especially with the side effects associated with it. During the appointment I will have my third PSA test since surgery. My last PSA test, the results had dropped to 8.15 ng/mL, which is a little better then the test before. So hopefully this test, the PSA will continue to decline.
Last week, I went back to the Radiologist for the third time to discuss Radiation therapy, had a lower body mold made, and a CT scan done. I explained to the Radiologist that I feel like I’m still healing internally and don’t what to start the Radiation therapy yet. I told him again that since I’m still experiencing incontinence issues, I do not want to start the Radiation therapy until the dripping faucet stops. He was in agreement and stated that it is my choice. Again it was discussed that there is a possibility of damaging my bladder during the Radiation therapy which I don’t want since I’ve already lost 50% of my bladder. He stated that other things could be done, if there was damage done. I explained to him that during the day, pads still aren’t even an option; they’re required. I’m still using around two pads a day which isn’t bad compared to what it used to be. It’s been about 18 weeks since the catheter was removed, so the progress has been good, but very slow in my eyes. The way we talked, I’m probably going to start radiation treatments around the end of June unless something changes.
After the Radiologist’s appointment I really started to have second thoughts about continuing with the radiation treatments. Especially after the possible side effects were explained and signing of the consent form that goes along with it. The Radiologist is going to put a treatment plan together after they finish reviewing the CT scan results. So I do have some time to think about continuing and the Radiologist agreed with me.
Unfortunately the ED issues are still there and I’ve tried a few things to see what would work, with a little bit of luck. The Lavitra, Viagra, and Cialis haven’t been much help at all and have really been a waste. They just don’t seem to work at all. The VED is okay but does cause some self inflicted pain which isn’t very pleasant. Tried to tolerate the pain, but sometimes it’s a little too much to bear. The penile injection process is pretty crazy, but it seems to work the best out of all of them sometimes. There have been instances where it just didn’t really work at all. According to the Pharmacist, the prescription might need to be changed to a different mixture.
At 25 weeks post surgery, I’m still sore around the incision area and puffy in areas. There appears to be fluid retention possibly on my inner thighs. Occasionally I still get the internal pains which last a short time then go away. I’m assuming that this is just part of the internal healing process. The taste buds appear to be back to normal, but I have found McDonald’s French fries just don’t taste well anymore. It’s really weird, but true; I just can’t eat McDonald’s French fries anymore, but will eat French fries from other restaurants.
The emotions are still screwed up from the hormone therapy but are better than when I was first diagnosed with the PCa. This PCa journey has made me really think about what is truly important in this life and what isn’t. I’ve taken a much closer look at the family and future, instead of living in the past.
My wife and I have talked about the ADT therapy and radiation treatment really being worth it. At times she sees how hard it has been to get through this part of my life. Once you get the cancer it seems like it becomes the controller of your life. That is the part that I would like to break and continue on with life.
I still feel so fortunate receiving the great medical care from all of the Doctors and Nurses at the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance and the University of Washington. With them, this journey has been a little easier to continue with. The wonderful people at SCCA and UofW have had a huge influence with my continued healing progression. I’m so very grateful to have this feeling, since I believe it helps with the healing process.
God Bless and Peace be with you.
John Stankus
Just checking in to see how you've been doing, I've been thinking about you.
Keep strong brother,
Kip
I see you are developing a new normal. I am happy that your taste buds are getting back to normal. Must be nice to eat what you enjoy and have it taste good.
Talk to your doctor about the hot flashes and ask if there is anything that you can take to lessen them. Some men have been very successful in eliminating them.
Glad to hear that you are getting back to work. I am sure that helps also,
Kathy
All things considered, it sounds like you are doing pretty well -- which isn't intended to imply what fun you must be having, but is more of a comment on where you started from.
Are you familiar with the old Irish joke about the man who is trying to find his way to Cork, and he stops at a cross-roads with no signpost to ask a man which road he should take.
The man thinks for a little while and then he says, "To be sure, if I wanted to get to Cork I wouldn't want to be startin' from here."
Keep your chin up. Laugh at the hot flashes. Tell yourself you are one drip less incontinent every day, and keep those fire trucks running!
:O)
I’m currently 14 weeks post surgery and just recently had my second PSA test. My first PSA test results were 10.08 ng/mL at 8 weeks and now my PSA has dropped to 8.15 ng/mL . Before surgery, the Doctor’s did comment that there would be a highly probable chance of an elevated PSA. All of the time I was hoping for 0 PSA, but at least it did drop.
A week ago I started ADT with a Lupron injection that lasts for three months and Casodex orally on a daily basis. The doctors are telling me that I will probably be in this therapy program for at least 2-3 years. I’m really not looking forward to therapy for that long, especially with some of the side effects. The injection was very interesting and sore in that area for a few days. The syringe is very intimidating once you get a visual of it and the nurse breaks the seal and starts shaking it up. The injection went into my back side and was sorer than prior tetanus injections I’ve received. After a couple of days, the lump and soreness did disappear. The day after the injection, I started getting the hot flashes which ahs been an interesting experience. The hot flashes come and go at various times without any warning. I was driving in to work the other day and it was probably 35 degrees outside when the hot flashes started, so I rolled the window down and turned off the heater in the truck and everything was good. This was crazy getting the hot flash feeling which has happened many times since the start of the ADT therapy.
In two weeks, I’m going back to the Radiologist for the second time to discuss Radiation therapy. During the last visit we discussed the need for me to be healed very well internally or don’t start the Radiation therapy. Since I’m still experiencing incontinence issues, I do not want to start the Radiation therapy until the dripping faucet stops. It was discussed that there is a possibility of damaging my bladder during the Radiation therapy which I don’t want since I’ve already lost 50% of my bladder.
During the day, pads still aren’t even an option; they’re required, since the healing has been a very slow process. I did speak with my Urologist and he mentioned that it could take up to 2 months following the catheter removal to see any major improvement. When I’m sitting or lying down everything is fine until I get up and start moving around, then the faucet starts leaking. Currently I’m using around two pads a day which isn’t bad compared to what it used to be. It’s only been about 10 weeks since the catheter was removed, so the progress is good, but slow.
The ED issues are still around, but I’ve tried a few things to see what would work. The Lavitra and Cialis didn’t help at all, tried them twice and just got a headache. Now the VED is very interesting and I’ve only tried it once so far. The VED instruction booklet stated that you need to practice to gain its full potential. I totally agree with the manufacturer after trying it and see that using it more often will make it easier. Grooming is very important to do prior to use otherwise you will cause some self inflicted pain. Also the incontinence issues don’t do to well with the VED either. So far, I have found that the penile injections have performed with the best results. The injection process is pretty crazy, but it accomplishes what it is supposed to do.
Being 14 weeks post surgery, I still am sore around the incision area and puffing on my inner thighs. On occasions I get these internal pains which last a short time and then go away. This is probably part of the healing going on inside. My taste buds are finally feeling normal, but on occasion, I do find something that doesn’t taste well anymore.
Currently my emotions are still messed up, but nothing like they were when I was first diagnosed with the PCa. This PCa journey is not fun, but it has definitely taken me back a couple of steps and made me really think about what is truly important in this life. Looking back on things, I’ve been so fortunate to have great medical care from all of the Doctors and Nurses at the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance and the University of Washington. Without them, I don’t believe that I would be doing this well. During this journey, I’ve been very fortunate to meet some wonderful people that have influenced my progression and I’m very grateful. It’s been very difficult, but when someone just makes you laugh about it, that really helps.
God Bless and Peace be with you.
John Stankus
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