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Should I wait until stage three before having radio therapay

Posted , 8 users are following.

peterjames98
peterjames98

I am 73 and have just been diagnosed with stage1/2 prostate cancer, Gleason score 9, following a 16.7 PSA and biopsy. I have begun hormone therapy but am not keen to start radiotherapy until I absolutely have to because of the side effects. I gather that treatment for stage three prostate cancer is almost as successful as stage 1/2. In which case I would rather wait for as long as possible.

I assume that there is a reasonable time lapse before stage three moves on to stage four, so my preference would be to have regular MRI scans and only go for radio therapy when the cancer has escaped the prostate capsule.

Can anyone advise me about the best course of action?

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  • Dudley71081
    Dudley71081 peterjames98

    Posted

    Hi Peter,

     

    It is good to hear from you and I am pleased to learn that you are going along well at this stage.

    And,  although you speak about chemo with understandable antipathy it may be,  that Radiotherapy has knocked off the cancer entirely ?   Anyway, here's hoping.  

    We we too thought of going on holiday so soon as I had finished EBRT,  but unfortunately approaching dep. date I was still not well enough.  So we cancelled out and are now looking at Mar/ Apr 2015.

    Incidentally,  in 1984 I ran the Berlin Marathon.  It was then as now Autumn and I remember W Berlin as a beautiful City.  Weather was mixed and perfect ( i. e. raining ) on Race Day.  My time was 3.23.06 which was not bad for a 41yr old mesomorphic,  better at 400mtrs.  Great atmosphere ( pre-unification ).  I went optimistically through 32 klms in 2.06 but then, took a sports supp which made me sick.  So I never got under 3hrs. 

    Next day,  we had a tour of E. Berlin and I tell stories about Checkpoint Charlie,  E. German Alsatian dogs running up ladders to coach and lorry roofs, mirrors on trolleys being run underneath the chassis,  sub-machine guns everywhere and sand-bagged machine guns on roof-tops pointed at us.  Nothing in the shops and grey lopsided beet-sugar lumps which looked like they had been made by hand.  And,  being followed everywhere, not discreetly,  by pairs of men in double-breasted raincoats!  No kidding.

    Anyway have a great time and don't mention the ..... ( or football ).

    Best Regards

    Dudley 

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