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Very pleased with outcome

Posted , 10 users are following.

david41094
david41094

I had my first annual review yesterday after deciding on EBRT plus hormone therapy for a 4+4 diagnosis. I must say that the side effects have been minimal - very few problems with incontinence and some ED that is resolved with Viagra - which is not always needed. My PSA has come down in the first year since treatment from 2.5 to 0.4 (it was nudging 10 prior to treatment). I am 58 years old and have not missed a day's work although going to the hospital 5 days a week for 7 weeks was a bit of a chore. Apart from 6 monthly PSA tests I have mentally put it all behind me and would heartily recommend the path I have taken. Good luck to all

0 likes, 37 replies

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  • butch88367
    butch88367 david41094

    Posted

    I have also been diagnosed with 4+4, meeting with radiation ongologist and urologist wants to start hormone therapy. Your post has been the most incouraging, since I do not want surgery.  So are the affects of radiation pretty minimul?  I am 60 years old, also wondering what the affects were of the hormone therapy?
    • david41094
      david41094 butch88367

      Posted

      I would heartily recommend RT - the side effects for me have been minimal and my PSA in the first year has gone down from 2.6 to 0.4. The hormone therapy has left me with man-boobs but I can live with that. I chose RT because the side effects from surgery seem very variable - some have few side effects but for some they seem quite severe. I didn't want to chance it. I had my RT at Maidstone hospital in England and the hardest part was getting there and back every day for 37 days. I wish you all the best.

    • richard98806
      richard98806 butch88367

      Posted

      Why no surgery? I am 2 months post op.  Surgery was easy for me. One night stay in the hospital and 10 days with catheter.  I also had a home health nurse visit 3 times in a 2 week period to check on the staples and I was monitored for vitals via blu tooth technology.  All covered by insurance.  I am 67 and the only 'issue' I have iis urinary incontinence which I deal with it by wearing pads and I do all activities I used to do.  Walking/jogging and I just completed a vacation which entailed 2 eleven hour airplane travel. In 2 weeks I will have my PSA taken so I guess that will be the 'test of success'.

      When I was deciding on treatment what steered me away from RT was the 5 week daily treatments, in addition to 'down the road' complications, like bowel issues and 'burned' tissue.  Another issue was the uncertainty that all the cancerous cells would be destroyed and the likelihood of the need for hormone therapy.  In my investigation of hormone therapy there seemed to be effects that were uncertain besides man boobs,hot flashes and energy levels for 6 plus months.  The increased risk of heart disease increased statistically from 8% to over 20% (exact # may be off) but I felt that to be a significant increase.

      Anyway, I spoke personally with many survivors both surgery and Raiation and all were satisfied.  Fortunately for us PC is a slow grower and we have options. 

    • barney34567
      barney34567 butch88367

      Posted

      Surgery in the hands of a highly experienced surgeon is often successful if the cancer is believed to be confined to the prostate. If surgery fails you can always have RT.

      but if you have RT to the prostate you can never have successful surgery afterwards.

      hormone therapy has more often than not horrible side effects. 

      i had SBRT over three sessions and had no side effects at all.

      that said it failed to control the cancer.

    • barney34567
      barney34567 richard98806

      Posted

      In some cases only a few high doses of RT are given in place of many low dose sessions of RT. I had 3 sessions.

      Recent literature supports a lower number of sessions but higher doses in many cases.

    • david41094
      david41094 barney34567

      Posted

      The notion that you can have RT after RP but not the other way round is slightly flawed. You can have a prostatectomy after RT although it is a more complex operation. Also, RT after a prostatectomy is not easy because the lack of a prostate tends to cause burning to the bladder and rectum.

    • barney34567
      barney34567 david41094

      Posted

      You are correct, one can have salvage surgery after RT. My point is that in addition to it being more complex, it is rarely successful.
  • ayman78787
    ayman78787 david41094

    Posted

    Anyone has experience or knowledge on lymphocele? Are they chronic, recurring? treatable?

    I had one after RP and doctor sucked it all out, said 5% chance of recurrence, and checked 10 days after I left hospital and no recurrence. Hope that's the end of it.

  • jackie20138
    jackie20138 david41094

    Posted

    Hi David, I see your post was six months ago so hope you are still getting on well. My hubbies "scores" are very similar to yours. On h t, part way through 23 sessions of r t and then he is to have some brachytherapy. My query is about the e d , etc. The HT has completely deadened all desire( this even includes kissing and cuddling) , so although the Dr has given us Viagra if was reluctantly, saying there was no point, if would give him a terrible headache and as he has no desire anyway....... Well, without being crude... How can you do anything without desire ? ( We had a brilliant sex life before diagnosis ) ......I just wondered whether you would be prepared to share your view on this. Thank you

    • david41094
      david41094 jackie20138

      Posted

      I am sorry to hear of this unfortunate side effect of your husband's treatment. Judging by the comments on this and other forums ED seems much worse with surgery than with radiotherapy although that is small comfort. Like your husband, I was prescribed Sildenafil but I no longer take it due to the headaches. I have found that although arousal time is much longer and of course the orgasms are 'dry', if you take your time it is all worth it in the end and the orgasm is not too different. We found it best to set aside a prescribed time (I know this doesn't sound romantic but the days of the quickie are over).

      ?Your husband will also be dealing with the psychological aspect and may be wary of engaging in any form of affection as he is aware that the end result may be disappointing (I find it strange that there is so much awareness of the psychological effect of a mastectomy on women yet nothing is said about the extreme effect of any form of PCa treatment on men - hey ho).

      ?This may sound glib, but try to start with small steps - talking, cuddling etc. I am sure you have tried but I can assure you there is light at the end of that tunnel. The effects of the HT will wear off in time and his desire will return.

      ?I sincerely wish you all the best. 

  • jackie20138
    jackie20138 david41094

    Posted

    Thank you so much for this, David. It has given me hope that there may be some light at the end of the tunnel. Yes, I can do " small steps " and will hang on in there

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