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Weight loss, back pain and high PSA level after turb

Posted , 7 users are following.

y72631
y72631

two years ago my dad had a surgery to treat some urinary symptoms, and there was no cancerous cells and after around a month from that things started to go back to normal.

now in two months he lost around 12 kilos and says he has back pain. he went to run some tests and the only thing that was abnormal was his PSA, it was 14. 

I remember before his surgery it was high as well, it was 9.

Thing is, a doctor from our family asked him to do a full body isotope scan. but he doesn't want to go through procedures again. he says his back pain is not that bad and he really wants not to be worried about anything.

now he has no urinary symptoms at all.

should we worry?

PS:

in these two years he retired and he's suffering from depression. so that might be a reason for the pain and the weight loss.

and his dad had prostate cancer before he died.

We're very worried about cancer and I really don't want him to go through lots of steps and procedures since I know it will really affect how he feels.

so Question is

1- can somebody has prostate cancer if there are no urinary symptoms?

2- are PSA levels affected by depression or anxiety?

Thanks a lot.

0 likes, 7 replies

7 Replies

  • Pepasan
    Pepasan y72631

    Posted

    1 I have prostate cancer and the only urinary symptoms I get are from Benign Enlargement, which I also have. It can be confusing, but I believe it is very possible to have no symptoms and yet have cancer. This is why women have breast cancer scans, older people have bowel cancer tests and men can have prostate cancer tests, though NICE doesn't require them for all older men.

    2. I've never heard of PSA levels being affected by anxiety. (I'm a retired psychotherapist).

    I get the feeling your father is 'in denial' about the possibility of prostate cancer being the cause of his back pain. I had a friend who died because he was too late getting his back pain investigated. I believe he had prostate cancer that had spread to his bones.

    I strongly recommend you try to persuade your father to do as his doctor suggests. If the scan shows no cancer, wouldn't that be a relief? If it shows cancer there may still be time for treatment to be effective.

  • ktmxc-f
    ktmxc-f y72631

    Posted

    What was your fathers Psa after one year?  Do you know the size of his prostate?

    Cancer can be present without symptoms, Psa is affected by prostate infection, sex the night before, aggressive bike riding, bph. Psa of 14 is high. I would have the scans the Dr's are recommending. 

    I would ask same questions on the Ustoo site. 

  • Pepasan
    Pepasan y72631

    Posted

    On re-reading, I see it is not your father's own doctor, but a relative who is a doctor. My advice is just the same, except your father may need to be specific in requesting the bone scan.

  • derek76
    derek76 y72631

    Posted

    This does not answer your question though back main may eventually may eventually lead to prostate tests. 

    When I changed doctors in 1994 the first thing I went to see him about was lower back pain. He surprised me by saying it might be caused by my prostate and did a DRE. He said that my prostate felt enlarged (35 grms) and sent me to see a urologist. The Uro did a PSA test that gave a reading of 5.0 and then he wanted a biopsy. The biopsy was negative and I refused the TURP that was offered as a matter of some urgency. The lower back eventually went and my PSA continued to rise to 9.8 as my prostate grew to 75 grms.   

  • keith42667
    keith42667 y72631

    Posted

    >now he has no urinary symptoms at all.<<

    Did the TURP work that well?  Thats good, but I wonder.. sometimes patients need another one or the first time isn't as effective as men would like.  I'm wondering if he's retaining any urine after doing a natural void (without help of a catheter).  PSA level can show a spike or a rise if the patient is retaining lots of stale urine and not emptying the bladder on a regular basis.  My Urologist looked at my last couple of blood tests after I started doing CIC, said the PSA level was now going down and attributed it to the fact that I was now completely emptying at least 4 times in 24 hours.  

    • derek76
      derek76 keith42667

      Posted

      His father had a TURB not a TURP. Presumably the TURB was to remove suspicious growths from the bladder
  • oldbuzzard
    oldbuzzard y72631

    Posted

    Lots of things can impact PSA scores - from sex to a bike ride and they can vary day to day for no reason. That said, 9 to 14 is a pretty big increase - he might want to have it done again to confirm, If it comes our closer to 9, don't worry, if its higher, maybe further tests are in order.

    Some things about prostate cancer - only 5% ever amount to anything - 95% with it die of something else with no impact from cancer at all. They have ways of scoring it so effectively, they can get it down so that only maybe 2% need to be treated. So if he has it, its very unlikely to cause problems. It does sound as though he has depression for sure. And that's a big weight loss. From what you've posted, it sounds as though the weight loss and depression are the biggest issues right now and I would have him checked out for those.

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