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Ralph Valle
- 76, Male
- Phoenix, AZ
- United States
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Ralph Valle's Groups
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Let's Talk About Survi...
29 members
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Faith and Healing
52 members
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Diet
54 members
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ED and incontinence po...
135 members
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Africa & Prostate Cancer
22 members
Ralph Valle's Discussions
PSA PROVIDES CHOICE AND CAN SAVE LIVES...Promote PCa Awareness, just do it!
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Hello Ralph,
Yes my testosterone was checked and it was around 10 at the time ADT failed. Like Michael Altholz below, I had a ferocious doubling time at least before ADT, about 23 days so I was not surprised when ADT only worked for me for about ...
Yes Ralph I did. My urologist immediately retested. The result was the same.
I have since moved to NC and see a Geniourilogical Oncologist at Duke. He strongly believes that this waiting period allowed the cancer to spread to my bone. I now have 9...
Kevin, was your testosterone checked when you said that ADT failed? Glad to see you are responding to Keto. Good going!
Michael, by any chance did you have that high PSA result retested? For that exponential increase your PSA had to be doubling every 12 days. Hard to believe when your PSA responded so well to further treatment.
My Dr. tried intermittent treatment. My psa was 0.2 at the end of my 3 month Lupron cycle. After an additional 3 months of waiting I came in for my psa test. I was shocked to find out that my psa had shot up to 26.8. So, intermittent treatment is ...
For those wwho have been following my story "On Beyond ADT";
For me, ADT failed in May, started HD Ketoconazole in June, at 5 month check-up, PSA was halved again, down from .41 to .20. All side effects have continued bearable though coping with ...
I was on testosterone replacement therapy for 5 years (off and on) before I developed my PCA. I cannot prove but suspect this was a major contributing factor.
Robert
Roger,
Testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) for men with untreated and treated PCa can be applied under the control of a physician who knows enough about the biology of prostate cancer. First, let me say that the risk of throwing gas into the fi...
Profile Information
- Have you been diagnosed with prostate cancer?
- Yes
- About Me:
- Phoenix, Arizona. Retired chemist; PCa survivor since 1992; patient advocate; Chapter Leader for two AZ US TOO support groups; Amateur radio (KT7P); Photography.
In April 1992, I was like most of my male contemporaries, totally oblivious of prostate cancer or its significance. I had just experienced an episode of frequent nocturnal urination, which I attributed to an infection. Then out of the blue, I was tested for PSA (my very first one) and scheduled for a biopsy when this result came back abnormally high at 13.6 ng/ml
The positive diagnostic result hit me hard as all these events developed rapidly and I was dreadfully unprepared to deal with the disease. This lack of basic knowledge about prostate cancer risk as we age is one of the things that present day males must avoid. Any male can be diagnosed with prostate cancer. Many without a symptom whatsoever! Learn the basics and avoid facing a situation like I did, where I needed to depend on other's opinions to decide what to do. Treatments affect our lives. Learn and decide from a knowledge base. You owe it to yourself and your family.
Dx: 5/92 at age 58, PSA 13.6 ng/ml(first PSA ever), Gleason 5 (3,2), 6 out of 6 positive biopsy cores, T2c, DRE +, Neg. Bone scan, Neg. CT scan, Neg. bladder pyelogram, Neg. chest x-ray,
Tx: RP 6/92, Gleason 6 (4,2), T4, Bilateral seminal vesicle invasion, positive margins, tumor invading and attached to rectum wall, Bilateral orchiectomy 9/92, PSA <0.2 ng/ml since 9/92;PSA 9/05, <0.03 ng/ml, DPC assay; PSA 3/06, <0.1 ng/ml, Abbott; PSA 3/07, <0.1 ng/ml, Bayer assay; 5/08, <0.1 ng/ml, Roche; last PSA 5/09 <0.1 ng/ml, Roche
PCA ADVOCACY
* Founding member of the National Prostate Cancer Coalition
* Member of the Arizona Prostate Cancer Task Force
* Twice participant to the Department of Defense Prostate Cancer Research Program, Peer Review
* Twice participant to the California Cancer Research Program
* Facilitator for US TOO Prostate Cancer Survivor Support Group — St. Joseph’s Hospital and Medical Center, Phoenix, AZ — 1993 to present.
* Facilitator for US TOO Prostate Cancer Survivor Support Group — Foothills Library , Glendale, AZ — 1994 to present.
* Volunteer speaker for the American Cancer Society — 1995 to present.
* Member of the Man to Man One on One Prostate Cancer Outreach Program since 1999
Please visit our site and participate on the bulletin board and chat rooms. It is a good way to exchange information, network and organize.
- Website:
- http://www.pcainaz.org/phpBB304
Ralph Valle's Photos
Comment Wall (55 comments)
- At 2:42pm on November 14, 2009,
Joe McCleskey said… - Ralph, are you suggesting that if the time came to make this decision, I should do nothing.
Joe
- At 10:07pm on November 5, 2009,
Joe McCleskey said…
- Aloha Ralph Valle,
Mike Scott suggested that I ask you about Orchiectomy. My experience with Lupron Depot was not good and I asked to stop the shots after one year. If I need to go back on ADT, at this point I would choose Orchiectomy. So my questions are what are the side affects? I know this includes loss of testosterone, but are there other side affects that could be more serious than Lupron Depot. What I did not like about ADT is that with this chemical, to lessen the side affects you take more chemicals. My last shot was April 08, my hips still hurt at the injection site. Cortizone shots at the pain site allow me to exercise without pain. Do not know how long till I need another shot. Doc's do not know why. My body reacts badly to many chemicals, like FlowMax is put me out of commission pain in my sinuses.
Any info would be appreciated.
Joe
- At 9:44am on September 23, 2009,
Angela Jenkins said… - Ralph - Kathy Meade posted the following on PCAI this morning:
I wanted to let those of you who knew Rick Ward that he died recently. He
died of COPD after a few weeks in hospice. I spoke to him shortly before he
died and he was comfortable and had accepted his upcoming death.
- At 10:18pm on September 21, 2009,
Angela Jenkins said…
- If you find out he is indeed in hospice, could you get the name of the facility so I can send him a note? Thanks so much.
Oh, and the equipment.....no worries. Equipment is replaceable, you're not. Glad you were ok :-)
See you soon!
- At 8:55pm on September 20, 2009,
Angela Jenkins said…
- Ralph,
It was great to finally meet you last week. We should have the interviews edited and posted within 2-3 weeks.
I meant to ask you about Rick Ward when I saw you. I've tried to e-mail him and it returns undeliverable. Have you heard from him lately?
Thanks for all you do!!! You're an inspiration to us all.
- At 4:58pm on July 4, 2009,
Channel Surfer Dude said…
- Mike referred me to you....
I see most recommend a 2nd and 3rd opinion. My urologist recommended daVinci...if I go to another urologist I feel he will concur. Who should I go for another opinion on my treatment? And do any of you know someone who is knowledgeable and honest about HIFU in Tucson? Just someone who is objective
- At 2:00pm on May 25, 2009,
E. Michael D. ("Mike") Scott said… - OMG ... You mean you have a life beyond prostate cancer! What an idea!
(Glad to hear your doing well.)
- At 5:50pm on May 24, 2009,
E. Michael D. ("Mike") Scott said…
- Hey Ralph:
How are you doing? You've been very quiet recently. Are you doing OK?
Mike
- At 7:20pm on March 24, 2009,
JanB said… - Hi Ralph!
Miss the old chats & have not quite figured out all the ins & outs of this site yet - Gord is still truckin' along - on nothing but Avodart at the moment and a one month doubling time - scary days - so far asymptomatic, (Onco only treats symptoms - not numbers!)
Nice to see Judy here also!
CJ
- At 7:18pm on February 22, 2009,
Vanessa said… - Hola Mr. Rafael,
Thank you for being so kind and taking time out of your day to help us. I will give my dad your name and number. Hes actually going in to see a Doctor tomorrow. Well see how that goes...I will keep you and Mr. Mike updated.
Thank you so much for helping us! Ive never gotten any help like this from stranger it's awesome to know there is kind people in the world!
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