Post by farrout on Sept 20, 2013 11:37:57 GMT -5
The catchy title says it all. I am putting this message out there because I was too ignorant to understand what PSA tests were really all about and how to interpret them. My GP was also ignorant.
What, me have Prostate cancer? I am in good shape, work out, eat right, don't smoke, look younger than my age. etc., etc., etc. We all say that to ourselves. STOP IT! You are fooling yourself.
It is said that every male will contract Prostate Cancer (PC) in his lifetime if they live long enough. People who have PC are largely asymptomatic. But PC is a very slow growing cancer and can be in your system for 10 years before you would really notice it. Once they start having PC symptoms, it is probably too late and the cancer has already spread to other parts of the body.
What is the good news? If caught early, PC is very treatable and the non-recurrence rates 5 and 10 years treatment is 85-90%. How do you catch it early?
I am talking about the PSA Test for Prostate Cancer. PSA is a simple test that should be conducted annually once you get into your mid 40's. My GP told me that current medical practice was to not worry about the PSA level until it got above 4.0. WRONG! Although if a PSA level gets high - 6.0 or way above, it is serious but that is not the whole story. I have talked to many people and researched a lot to understand that it is not just the relative PSA level but the rate of PSA rise over the years. There are many people out there who have had a 2.0 or 3.0 PSA level and had full blown PC. We all know people in their 40's and 50's who have had PC. In my own case, I showed a 5.9 PSA this year which had been preceded by 3.9, 3.4, and 3.2 for the previous years. Yep, my PC has been with me for at least 3 years according to my urologist. There is also the Digital Rectal Exam (DRE) whereby the doctor feels your prostate for hardness, lumps, or any other things that might indicate PC. My GP found nothing in my DREs over the years but my radiation oncologist who specializes in PC did find something with the DRE.
If you have this PSA rise, you will need to have a prostate biopsy done by a urologist. A relatively simple test but it will definitively show you if you have PC, how much of your prostate is affected, and the true seriousness of your disease. Following the prostate biopsy, you will probably have a full body bone scan and a pelvic MRI to determine if the PC has spread beyond the prostate. The answer you are hoping for is that the PC is localized in the prostate.
PC is a hereditary disease much like breast cancer. If someone in your bloodline has had PC, then you are highly likely to get it too and earlier than you might think. 40 years old is not too early to be getting a PSA test annually.
What are your PC treatment options? Currently, there are 3 main modalities for treatment. There is a 4th modality which is to Observe the PC. Usually applicable to the 75 and older crowd who are more likely to die of something else before the PC gets bad enough to be their cause of death.One is the DaVinci Robotic surgery where the prostate is removed surgically. This is usually recommended for the under 65 crowd. Another is the usual radiation treatment where your prostate is bombarded with photons. Another option is Proton Therapy treatment. Proton Therapy has advantages over the other 2 options but I will let you read up on them. If your urologist dismisses Proton Therapy off hand, find someone more competent immediately.
Before this summer, I had not heard of Proton Therapy. Found out about it on line and talked with a local gent who had undergone this form of treatment. All of the Proton Therapy centers are more than willing to send you a list of many. many Proton Therapy patients who are more than willing to discuss it with you. I have talked to many PC veterans who had never heard of Proton Therapy.
I am not an MD, only a dumb engineer who has been forced into getting smart about Prostate Cancer and its treatments. But, if I have got your attention and maybe worried you enough to go get an annual physical and a PSA test, then good.
What, me have Prostate cancer? I am in good shape, work out, eat right, don't smoke, look younger than my age. etc., etc., etc. We all say that to ourselves. STOP IT! You are fooling yourself.
It is said that every male will contract Prostate Cancer (PC) in his lifetime if they live long enough. People who have PC are largely asymptomatic. But PC is a very slow growing cancer and can be in your system for 10 years before you would really notice it. Once they start having PC symptoms, it is probably too late and the cancer has already spread to other parts of the body.
What is the good news? If caught early, PC is very treatable and the non-recurrence rates 5 and 10 years treatment is 85-90%. How do you catch it early?
I am talking about the PSA Test for Prostate Cancer. PSA is a simple test that should be conducted annually once you get into your mid 40's. My GP told me that current medical practice was to not worry about the PSA level until it got above 4.0. WRONG! Although if a PSA level gets high - 6.0 or way above, it is serious but that is not the whole story. I have talked to many people and researched a lot to understand that it is not just the relative PSA level but the rate of PSA rise over the years. There are many people out there who have had a 2.0 or 3.0 PSA level and had full blown PC. We all know people in their 40's and 50's who have had PC. In my own case, I showed a 5.9 PSA this year which had been preceded by 3.9, 3.4, and 3.2 for the previous years. Yep, my PC has been with me for at least 3 years according to my urologist. There is also the Digital Rectal Exam (DRE) whereby the doctor feels your prostate for hardness, lumps, or any other things that might indicate PC. My GP found nothing in my DREs over the years but my radiation oncologist who specializes in PC did find something with the DRE.
If you have this PSA rise, you will need to have a prostate biopsy done by a urologist. A relatively simple test but it will definitively show you if you have PC, how much of your prostate is affected, and the true seriousness of your disease. Following the prostate biopsy, you will probably have a full body bone scan and a pelvic MRI to determine if the PC has spread beyond the prostate. The answer you are hoping for is that the PC is localized in the prostate.
PC is a hereditary disease much like breast cancer. If someone in your bloodline has had PC, then you are highly likely to get it too and earlier than you might think. 40 years old is not too early to be getting a PSA test annually.
What are your PC treatment options? Currently, there are 3 main modalities for treatment. There is a 4th modality which is to Observe the PC. Usually applicable to the 75 and older crowd who are more likely to die of something else before the PC gets bad enough to be their cause of death.One is the DaVinci Robotic surgery where the prostate is removed surgically. This is usually recommended for the under 65 crowd. Another is the usual radiation treatment where your prostate is bombarded with photons. Another option is Proton Therapy treatment. Proton Therapy has advantages over the other 2 options but I will let you read up on them. If your urologist dismisses Proton Therapy off hand, find someone more competent immediately.
Before this summer, I had not heard of Proton Therapy. Found out about it on line and talked with a local gent who had undergone this form of treatment. All of the Proton Therapy centers are more than willing to send you a list of many. many Proton Therapy patients who are more than willing to discuss it with you. I have talked to many PC veterans who had never heard of Proton Therapy.
I am not an MD, only a dumb engineer who has been forced into getting smart about Prostate Cancer and its treatments. But, if I have got your attention and maybe worried you enough to go get an annual physical and a PSA test, then good.
