Gleason Score (4+3=7). Any hope?

Gleason 7 can be treated and in almost all cases with complete success. Prostate can be removed or radiated. Removal is most common and also ends BPH symptoms as well. Radiation is also an option, but can lead to some side effects. Also, with radiation the prostate is still in place, so the cancer may be gone, but the BPH symptoms can be very irritating - this is what happened to me. If the prostate is removed and the cancer returns, then radiation is an option. If you get radiation first, removal is more difficult later on.

Of course, he could do nothing and wait, but that can be emotionally stressful. Don't worry about the PSA number - he already knows he has a tumor, and the Gleason grade and extent of the tumor or tumors is what is important. He can also get a 3T MRI and likely a 12 core biopsy - not fun, but tells you a lot about what is going on. I had radiation in 2014 and BPH symptoms ever since.

Of course there is hope! There is every probability that PCa will not play a further part in your dad's life. I had 4+4 5 years ago and after radiation and hormone therapy my PSA is still 0.2 and I don't much worry about it any more. 4+3 is only moderate risk. I would advise you that autopsies reveal that men in their 50s have a 50% chance of PCa, men in their 60s a 60% chance etc so all that happens in most cases is that you have a positive confirmation of what was there already. Strangely, it's the knowing that makes people worry. All the best for your dad.

Doesn't sound that serious otherwise they would have had him back sooner. They may do a rectal scan and the range of treatments now are nothing compared to 23 years ago when I had a TURP then a full Radical Prostatectomy as they found traces of the Big C. Mine came back 6 years after the op so I had to go for 37 visits of RT. That was in 2002. I am still here 23 years on. Great advances have been made in the treatment so look on the bright side. The injections are nothing to worry about.

Please do not worry about the 4+3 grade 7. It is a moderate grade and will need something done. I had exactly the same reading about a year and a half ago. The options are radiation and surgery. Brachytherapy, small "seeds" with radioactive content which are injected into the Prostate. Also the latest treatment, but not on NHS yet for Prostate, is Proton Therapy. I was fortunate to be able to get this in the UK, done by Rutherford Cancer Care, and it is easy, painless and safer as radiation is only released where the tumour is. Normal radiation can have side effects to other tissue.

A year after my treatment my recent PSA reading was last 0.15, so very low. It looks like cancer has gone and I had no side effects.

The downside of Proton therapy is that it costs!

Wish your father good luck and being positive is most important.

You are proceeding with reason and that is good.

Gleason 7 will not cause problems in the short term and checking the PSA again later is a good idea.

If the pathology reports shows only a few mm of tumor or only a few % of the core being positive, the amount of cancer is likely small and slow growing.

At some point, your dad will need an MRI and/or a 12 core or MRI-directed biopsy to determine extent of cancer and aggressiveness but there is no big hurry here.

This is a scary diagnosis when you are first told about it. The main thing is not to panic. There are many good treatment options available for your situation. What you need to do is to research the options along with the possible side affects. Your dad's prostate cancer is treatable and he can live a long happy life. It sounds like you don't trust his doctor too much, so it might be a good idea to check out a second doctor... maybe get advice from his primary care physician. I was diagnoses with PC just over 3 years ago. I had the 12 core biopsy - that showed 2 of the samples with cancer cells. 2 % in one, 10% in the other. I have a very good urologist/oncologist who told me about several treatment options including the wait and see, or what he referred to as watchful waiting. You just get checked regularly every few months. I didn't like knowing I had the cancer and it could progress ... and that I could do something about it and be done with it. I had a non aggressive type cancer that was slow growing. So that was on my side. My doctor directed me to a couple of websites that discussed various treatment options with success rates and side affects. I didn't especially like the removal option with surgery. I looked at forms of radiation treatments - the main one was one that was 36 sessions. One 15 minute session a day 5 days a week. There was one I checked out called Cyberknife. That was a high dose radiation treatment, but only 5 treatments. Each session was about 45 minutes. From what I read, you had to drink a large amount of water before each session to fill the bladder. That would cause the bladder to stay further away from the radiation so it would help prevent damage to it. Another option that I looked at was the Brachytherapy. Low dose radiation seed implants. The low dose helped reduce the chances of damage to the colon and bladder. This was a one time treatment done as an outpatient procedure. After meeting with another oncologist at the START Center, I decided on the Brachytherapy. The doctor I met with took the time to go over each option with me in detail. He told me about the pros and cons of each. The Brachytherapy seemed like the best option for me. I was put on a couple of medications about 2 weeks before the procedure... Tamsulosin, and Dutasteride. One was to shrink the prostate a bit, and the other was to help with urination. The radiation would irritate the urethra, so the medication would help with that. I had the procedure done and was released after about an hour in recovery. There is some urgency with urination for a few weeks after, but it gets better. My PSA at last check was .09. That was at the 3 year mark last August. I will go for another check in February. The doctor said that after that, I can probably see him once a year. I have been going every 6 months for a check. All has been fine. No infections, no incontinence, no E.D.

Do your research - and make sure your doctor has performed that procedure successfully many times.

Wishing you and your dad the best.