Consider PAE by an IR as first option
Posted , 13 users are following.
(for enlarged prostate)
Hi everyone, Many of you have good and bad experiences. And many are reading these blog sites to try to figure out the best option to address enlarged prostate. I have a fair amount of experience in the matter:
1) I went to 5 different Urologists for help
2) I tried FlowMax (I called it "FloMin"!)
3) I had Greenlight - A waste to try for larger prostates
4) I had TURP - It provided less than 12 months reprieve
5) I had HoLEP - It has worked great, though I now have retrograde ejaculation and probably lower testosterone
6) I know a fair amount about PAE (Prostate Artery Embolization) because I have many IR (Interventional Radiology) Doctor friends.
The point of this note is to help out you all realize the following:
1) PAE may be by far the best procedure for enlarged prostates. Why? Because it is non-invasive, it does not gouge out portions of your body, it probably is the best at helping you keep your testosterone/libido high, you can go back in if necessary and do it again, and if you decide later it was not as effective and you want to try TURP or something else you can.
2) You are wasting your time asking Urologists about PAE because none of them do PAE, it is a different type of procedure only done by IR's.
3) You are worth money to doctors, so expect very biased advice. They will only recommend procedures they are trained to do so they can make money off of your body. For example, I went to 4 Urologists who never once mentioned HoLEP as an option. When I found out about HoLEP through online forum sites I asked 3 of these Urologists what they thought of the procedure. All 3 said it was risky and not worth doing!! Most of them really tried to sell me on a 2nd TURP procedure. The bottom line is these doctors do not want to retool because it takes time and time is money, and there are too many of you patients out there who are not going to question the advice of your Urologist!
PAE is becoming mainstream in Europe and Australia and has started to be successful in the US. There are several very experienced IR doctors who can help you.
I suggest you all just search "PAE (and major city name)" and see what comes up. Chicago is becoming a hotbed of experience for this non-invasive procedure. Just look for "top IR doctors (and a major city)" and see what comes up. I can help you find great ones in Chicago.
I am not upset I had HoLEP because it really helped me. But I wish I knew about it early on and had tried it. I am pretty sure it would have solved my problems and helped my manly functions work optimally.
Lastly, if some of you are on anti coagulants,that may be another good reason to consider PAE, since it is non-invasive.
Remember, Urologists are not going to recommend PAE and many will not recommend HoLEP. It is up to you to do your homework!
7 likes, 24 replies
Sam05687 bill20925
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caringbah bill20925
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My own reasoning when deciding which option to choose was to go with the best option first which was PAE. If it didn't work I could try the others. As it turns out my PAE was extremely successful.
luo61644 caringbah
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mark23925 bill20925
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mark23925
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ramblin mark23925
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You don't have to be approved for the clinical trial to get the procedure, but that would defray some costs. Even with insurance, my cost was about $4000.
grant66038 bill20925
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I have nothing against up and coming treatments though such as PAE.
All treatments can have negative outcomes though TURP, PAE and many others.
The most important thing is to find a good surgeon who is very experienced in the procedure to be done whether it is TURP or PAE.
The other thing that helped me make a decision was to look at the objective stats that governments use to assess treatment outcomes. In my case TURP. Reading forums will only get you a collection of stories, some good, some bad. PAE has risks too as the prostate dies, the dying tissue can cause issues so nothing is ever perfect. No treatment ever is.
The prostate is very complex and the issues vary from person to person. Some patients here on the forum have complicated medical histories and problems and it makes sad reading.
luo61644 grant66038
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bill20925
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craig84609 bill20925
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mark23925 craig84609
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Trustme craig84609
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lester90053 bill20925
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luo61644 lester90053
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bill20925
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Regardless of whether you come to Chicago for help, search "VIR Chicago" and you can read up on Dr Steven Smith. He is a really advanced IR. The procedure is new to the US so do not expect to see a lot of stuff online in the US yet. I would get a consultation from him via phone to start. Or try another IR in a major US city. I am led to believe the downside risks are negligible and the procedure is non-invasive. A great fallback procedure would be HoLEP, and it worked great for me, but it cores out your prostate, and along with it can go your libido and possibly cause retrograde ejaculation. If you want to seriously consider HoLEP, the godfather of it is Jim Lingeman in Indi. He did my procedure. But I definitely would try PAE from an IR first given the chance to d it al over again. Good luck!
craig84609 bill20925
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vitaly02461 bill20925
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