Intermittent Therapy was.....Re: 47 yr old family history new member

[Guest guest]

I think invasive was the right word to use

– any procedure where a needle is stuck through your bowel into another

part of your body – in this case the prostate gland is invasive in my

book!!

I’ve been away on Off List for five

weeks, so am not aware of all your details, apart from a mail you wrote in June

saying <snip> I spoke to another doctor ….. and he tells me there

are other thing i can do besides hormone therapy and IMRT radiation …...

I have not one fiber in my body that tells me to let the doctors inject

hormones and radiate me, it's only to preserve life...What kind of life ? <snip>

It is unusual for a young

man with a high Gleason Score – and 8 is high, if it has been verified by

an expert – not to take some action to try to manage the disease. Are you

constrained financially – does your plan not pay for any specific treatment?

Or is it that you are prepared to accept that the disease will probably

progress anyway and you want to preserve your quality of life. I only ask

because you might find the balance you are looking for in intermittent ADT (Androgen

Deprivation Therapy. This can help manage the disease for many years and

although there are cycles when the sexual function is diminished this will

usually recover in the ‘off cycles’. We had a man about your age in

a support group I ran back in Africa who had

had six good years by the time I left there last year. Just an idea for you to pursue if you haven’t already.

All the best,

Terry Herbert in Melbourne, Australia

Diagnosed ‘96: Age

54: Stage T2b: PSA 7.2: Gleason 3+3=6: No treatment. August '06 PSA 27.4

My site is at www.yananow.net

As a

physician, I am painfully aware that most of the decisions we make with regard

to prostate cancer are made with inadequate data: Dr

“Snuffy” Myers.

From: ProstateCancerSupport

[mailto:ProstateCancerSupport ]

On Behalf Of allstar003

Sent: 14 August 2006 08:19 AM

To: ProstateCancerSupport

Subject: Re: 47 yr old family

history new member

i did not know the biopsy was considered invasive, i am 43 with a psa

of 25 and gleson of 8. I understood the biopsy was needed to see if if

cancer was presant. I had it done about two weeks after the first psa

of 20.7 I had blood in my urine and semen for about two weks and

everything went back to normal.To this date I have had no treatment

and have not felt this good in 20 years. I have learned alot more

since the biopsy and second psa,i go for my third psa on the 16th. I

will act accordingly after the results. The only thing I will share

with you is too read and ask questions,there is no such thing as a

dumb question.....the dumb question is the one you dont ask.

[Guest guest]

no terry....i am not constrained financially probably

mentally constrained but i have insurance that will

cover all treatments...hormone,radiation (imrt)

surgery but i am not sure when to treat. I have

another psa on the 16th and hope the numbers have

lowered. If they are what does that mean ? continue to

use the active watching ?

--- Terry Herbert wrote:

> I think invasive was the right word to use - any

> procedure where a needle is

> stuck through your bowel into another part of your

> body - in this case the

> prostate gland is invasive in my book!!

>

>

>

> I've been away on Off List for five weeks, so am not

> aware of all your

> details, apart from a mail you wrote in June saying

> <snip> I spoke to

> another doctor ... and he tells me there are other

> thing i can do besides

> hormone therapy and IMRT radiation .... I have not

> one fiber in my body that

> tells me to let the doctors inject hormones and

> radiate me, it's only to

> preserve life...What kind of life ? <snip>

>

>

>

> It is unusual for a young man with a high Gleason

> Score - and 8 is high, if

> it has been verified by an expert - not to take some

> action to try to manage

> the disease. Are you constrained financially - does

> your plan not pay for

> any specific treatment? Or is it that you are

> prepared to accept that the

> disease will probably progress anyway and you want

> to preserve your quality

> of life. I only ask because you might find the

> balance you are looking for

> in intermittent ADT (Androgen Deprivation Therapy.

> This can help manage the

> disease for many years and although there are cycles

> when the sexual

> function is diminished this will usually recover in

> the 'off cycles'. We had

> a man about your age in a support group I ran back

> in Africa who had had six

> good years by the time I left there last year. Just

> an idea for you to

> pursue if you haven't already.

>

>

>

> All the best,

>

> Terry Herbert in Melbourne, Australia

>

> Diagnosed '96: Age 54: Stage T2b: PSA 7.2: Gleason

> 3+3=6: No treatment.

> August '06 PSA 27.4

>

> My site is at www.yananow.net

> <http://www.yananow.net/>

>

> As a physician, I am painfully aware that most of

> the decisions we make with

> regard to prostate cancer are made with inadequate

> data: Dr " Snuffy "

> Myers.

>

>

>

> _____

>

> From: ProstateCancerSupport

> [mailto:ProstateCancerSupport ] On

> Behalf Of allstar003

> Sent: 14 August 2006 08:19 AM

> To: ProstateCancerSupport

> Subject: Re: 47 yr old

> family history new member

>

>

>

> i did not know the biopsy was considered invasive, i

> am 43 with a psa

> of 25 and gleson of 8. I understood the biopsy was

> needed to see if if

> cancer was presant. I had it done about two weeks

> after the first psa

> of 20.7 I had blood in my urine and semen for about

> two weks and

> everything went back to normal.To this date I have

> had no treatment

> and have not felt this good in 20 years. I have

> learned alot more

> since the biopsy and second psa,i go for my third

> psa on the 16th. I

> will act accordingly after the results. The only

> thing I will share

> with you is too read and ask questions,there is no

> such thing as a

> dumb question.....the dumb question is the one you

> dont ask.

>

>

__________________________________________________

[Guest guest]

Hi ,

I am somewhat puzzled by your expectation or

hope that your PSA number will come down on August 16. Absent any treatment,

and if your Gleason Score of 8 has been verified, your PSA is more likely to

increase than fall as the Gleason Score of 8 is an indicator of an aggressive

form of the disease.

I don’t know if you are aware of the

Partin’s Tables. You can read about them at http://urology.jhu.edu/prostate/partintables.php

The tables take the three things that established at diagnosis -- PSA

level, Gleason score, and estimated clinical stage – and are intended to

help men and their doctors focus on what is likely to be the best course of

treatment.

Using the data you have mentioned –

PSA of 25 ng/ml, Gleason Score of 8 and assuming you were staged as T1c, the

tables produces this indication of the likelihood of between 16% and 30%

(median 22%) chance of the disease being organ confined i.e. still within your gland.

There is a 50% chance (range 42% to 59%) of the disease extending beyond the

gland, a 17% chance (range 10% to 25%) of seminal vesicle invasion and an 11% chance

(range 5% to 18%) of the disease having reached your lymph nodes.

Given these figures it

seems likely that the doctors would want to radiate your gland, rather than

surgically remove the gland, so that they could deal with the disease in the

gland as well as that which may be immediately adjacent tot the gland. They probably

also consider that your disease is likely to be systemic, if not metastasized,

hence their apparent recommendation to use ADT (Androgen Deprivation Therapy)

Hope this helps you

somewhat to understand your position. I think you need to gain a clear understanding

and to talk to your doctors sooner rather than later to get some form of

treatment under way.

All the best,

Terry Herbert in Melbourne, Australia

Diagnosed ‘96: Age

54: Stage T2b: PSA 7.2: Gleason 3+3=6: No treatment. August '06 PSA 27.4

My site is at www.yananow.net

As a

physician, I am painfully aware that most of the decisions we make with regard

to prostate cancer are made with inadequate data: Dr

“Snuffy” Myers.

From: ProstateCancerSupport

[mailto:ProstateCancerSupport ]

On Behalf Of Hicks

Sent: 14 August 2006 12:15 PM

To: ProstateCancerSupport

Subject: Re: Intermittent Therapy was.....Re: 47 yr old

family history new member

no terry....i am not constrained financially probably

mentally constrained but i have insurance that will

cover all treatments...hormone,radiation (imrt)

surgery but i am not sure when to treat. I have

another psa on the 16th and hope the numbers have

lowered. If they are what does that mean ? continue to

use the active watching ?

--- Terry Herbert <ghenesh_49optusnet.au>

wrote:

> I think invasive was the right word to use - any

> procedure where a needle is

> stuck through your bowel into another part of your

> body - in this case the

> prostate gland is invasive in my book!!

>

>

>

> I've been away on Off List for five weeks, so am not

> aware of all your

> details, apart from a mail you wrote in June saying

> <snip> I spoke to

> another doctor ... and he tells me there are other

> thing i can do besides

> hormone therapy and IMRT radiation .... I have not

> one fiber in my body that

> tells me to let the doctors inject hormones and

> radiate me, it's only to

> preserve life...What kind of life ? <snip>

>

>

>

> It is unusual for a young man with a high Gleason

> Score - and 8 is high, if

> it has been verified by an expert - not to take some

> action to try to manage

> the disease. Are you constrained financially - does

> your plan not pay for

> any specific treatment? Or is it that you are

> prepared to accept that the

> disease will probably progress anyway and you want

> to preserve your quality

> of life. I only ask because you might find the

> balance you are looking for

> in intermittent ADT (Androgen Deprivation Therapy.

> This can help manage the

> disease for many years and although there are cycles

> when the sexual

> function is diminished this will usually recover in

> the 'off cycles'. We had

> a man about your age in a support group I ran back

> in Africa who had had six

> good years by the time I left there last year. Just

> an idea for you to

> pursue if you haven't already.

>

>

>

> All the best,

>

> Terry Herbert in Melbourne,

Australia

>

> Diagnosed '96: Age 54: Stage T2b: PSA 7.2: Gleason

> 3+3=6: No treatment.

> August '06 PSA 27.4

>

> My site is at www.yananow.net

> <http://www.yananow.net/>

>

> As a physician, I am painfully aware that most of

> the decisions we make with

> regard to prostate cancer are made with inadequate

> data: Dr " Snuffy "

> Myers.

>

>

>

>