Husband has surgery on January 11.

[Guest guest]

Hello,

My husband is having laparoscopic prostate cancer surgery on January 11 and I am

so terrified. I've been on the wonderful women's forum and they are awesome.

Very supportive. But I was wondering if any men who've been through it have

advice for me? Anything the women in your life did that helped? Anything they

did that hindered? Any advice for the loved ones who watch you go through this?

Mike is 63 and was diagnosed in October. His PSA is 4.3, gleason 6 and his stage

is T1C. Three out of 6 cores in his biopsy showed cancer - 5%, 15% and 20%. Mike

elected for surgery and will have it laparoscopically.

Part of my great fear is that Mike had a quadruple bypass heart surgery 5 years

ago. He never had a heart attack but for some reason, out of the blue, his heart

enlarged. It's been a rough road back to health - full of heart arrhythmias -

but Mike worked hard through exercise and diet to make things better. His

cardiologist said his heart was in great shape and if he could have picked a

time to have surgery, this was the time.

I'm just so terrified. Terrified his heart will give out during the surgery,

terrified of losing him, terrified that the cancer isn't confined in the

prostate and just feel so darn bad that Mike has to go through all this when

he's been through so much as it is. It also didn't help that a 70 year old high

profile judge from this area died suddenly from prostate cancer surgery. It was

all over the news.

I'm trying hard to be cheery, upbeat, positive and supportive, but I'm really

scared.

Any advice or thoughts?

Thanks for listening,

Sue