Posted: 9/9/2013 4:00:58 PM EDT
Well, the verdict is in. Prostate cancer is racist. This is GD, you know.  |
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If anyone's interested, I'm happy to answer any questions you guys have about prostate cancer or PSA screening. Consider it a free consultation with a urologist. I'm going in this thursday to have my prostate carpet bombed. This will be the 3rd biopsy this year. Maybe they'll find it this time. |
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I'm going in this thursday to have my prostate carpet bombed. This will be the 3rd biopsy this year. Maybe they'll find it this time. Quoted:
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If anyone's interested, I'm happy to answer any questions you guys have about prostate cancer or PSA screening. Consider it a free consultation with a urologist. I'm going in this thursday to have my prostate carpet bombed. This will be the 3rd biopsy this year. Maybe they'll find it this time. have they spoken at all about a prostate MRI? are they just chasing an elevated PSA? |
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have they spoken at all about a prostate MRI? are they just chasing an elevated PSA? Quoted:
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If anyone's interested, I'm happy to answer any questions you guys have about prostate cancer or PSA screening. Consider it a free consultation with a urologist. I'm going in this thursday to have my prostate carpet bombed. This will be the 3rd biopsy this year. Maybe they'll find it this time. have they spoken at all about a prostate MRI? are they just chasing an elevated PSA? Chasing an elevated PSA, anywhere from high 20's to low 30;s. |
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No antibiotics yet. It was discussed tho. He plans on taking at least 25 biopsies when I go in on thursday. Putting me under for it. It was a high number that originally prompted the first one. uhhh, I think you might wish to talk to him either about being treated for prostatitis or about a prostate MRI. I mean maybe he will find something, but with a PSA that high I'd expect it to be easy to find something wrong, especially on 2 biopsies. I personally think a saturation biopsy probably isn't the right next step with a PSA that high and 2 negative biopsies this year.. |
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uhhh, I think you might wish to talk to him either about being treated for prostatitis or about a prostate MRI. I mean maybe he will find something, but with a PSA that high I'd expect it to be easy to find something wrong, especially on 2 biopsies. I personally think a saturation biopsy probably isn't the right next step with a PSA that high and 2 negative biopsies this year.. Quoted:
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No antibiotics yet. It was discussed tho. He plans on taking at least 25 biopsies when I go in on thursday. Putting me under for it. It was a high number that originally prompted the first one. uhhh, I think you might wish to talk to him either about being treated for prostatitis or about a prostate MRI. I mean maybe he will find something, but with a PSA that high I'd expect it to be easy to find something wrong, especially on 2 biopsies. I personally think a saturation biopsy probably isn't the right next step with a PSA that high and 2 negative biopsies this year.. If this also turns out negative, I guess they will come up with another idea. I'm betting he 's sure he will find cancer this time tho. ETA, I appreciate your input and will mention these things to my doc.I'll keep you posted, if you like. |
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What PREVENTATIVE measures can be taken against Prostate Cancer? Quoted:
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If anyone's interested, I'm happy to answer any questions you guys have about prostate cancer or PSA screening. Consider it a free consultation with a urologist. What PREVENTATIVE measures can be taken against Prostate Cancer? Unfortunately, nothing. There are general health things that may have a slightly protective effect, like a healthy diet & exercise, not smoking, etc, but overall there are no specific risk factors for prostate cancer that can be altered by your habits. That's why we check PSA -- you can't alter your risk, but we can detect it relatively early usually. |
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If this also turns out negative, I guess they will come up with another idea. I'm betting he 's sure he will find cancer this time tho. ETA, I appreciate your input and will mention these things to my doc.I'll keep you posted, if you like. sure. I'd really like you to ask him about a prostate MRI to better localize any concerning areas before he goes doing a bunch of needle sticks. there might be more to your story that I don't know, but I'm really not excited about you going through yet another biopsy for this reason without other studies or treatments.. |
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If anyone's interested, I'm happy to answer any questions you guys have about prostate cancer or PSA screening. Consider it a free consultation with a urologist. Thanks for doing this. I had mine out a few years ago. Clean since. Why do they not recommend a PSA as a screening test? Seems to me like it is a component of a complete exam. |
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Thanks for doing this. I had mine out a few years ago. Clean since. Why do they not recommend a PSA as a screening test? Seems to me like it is a component of a complete exam. Quoted:
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If anyone's interested, I'm happy to answer any questions you guys have about prostate cancer or PSA screening. Consider it a free consultation with a urologist. Thanks for doing this. I had mine out a few years ago. Clean since. Why do they not recommend a PSA as a screening test? Seems to me like it is a component of a complete exam. It depends who you ask. The American Urological Association does recommend PSA screening. It's the USPTF that doesn't, mainly stating cost vs benefit of screening. Prostate cancer usually is a slow-growing, not very harmful cancer. Most people die "with" prostate cancer, not "of" prostate cancer. The issue with screening is that we're finding prostate cancer at a much earlier stage than we used to. This is causing men to have more prostate biopsies, which is leading to more interventions for prostate cancer like surgery and radiation. Since prostate cancer is usually slow-growing and won't really bother you, we're treating a lot of prostate cancer that's not likely to have ever really been a problem. For instance, you take a 70 year old man who all of a sudden has an elevated PSA. His likelihood of dying of prostate cancer in the next 10 years is fairly low, somewhere around 3%. His likelihood of dying of heart disease, a stroke, infection, etc is high.. but since we screened him, we're likely to find and treat that prostate cancer. So we routinely now try to have a conversation with our patients about the risks of screening, such as treating a cancer that's not likely to cause real problems. |
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Thanks for offering your time jmmcoy. I have total newbie questions (I just turned 41).
1. At what age do you recommend a first prostate exam? 2. Beyond creating prostate fluid, what does this gland do? I mean, if it gets removed, does it render you incapable of an erection? Incontinent? I genuinely don't know. |
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Thanks for offering your time jmmcoy. I have total newbie questions (I just turned 41). 1. At what age do you recommend a first prostate exam? 2. Beyond creating prostate fluid, what does this gland do? I mean, if it gets removed, does it render you incapable of an erection? Incontinent? I genuinely don't know. This would depend a little on family history. Did your dad have prostate problems? Grandpa? Uncle? Are you white? Usually we're recommending around 45 for the first PSA and rectal exam. Its main effect is adding fluid to the ejaculate. The nerves that control erections and ejaculation run very closely to the prostate, so when you have the prostate removed surgically you have a relatively high chance of being impotent afterward. There are "nerve sparing" surgeries that are performed to aid in maximizing the chance of keeping erections. Incontinence is also a risk of having your prostate treated, but mainly because the sphincters that control urination are on either side of the prostate and may end up being damaged or removed when the prostate is treated. You also cannot ejaculate without a prostate (though you can still orgasm) So to answer a little more directly, the prostate only aids in adding fluid to ejaculate, but you can have problems with ED and incontinence from treating the prostate because of its relation to other important structures. |
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sure. I'd really like you to ask him about a prostate MRI to better localize any concerning areas before he goes doing a bunch of needle sticks. there might be more to your story that I don't know, but I'm really not excited about you going through yet another biopsy for this reason without other studies or treatments.. Quoted:
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If this also turns out negative, I guess they will come up with another idea. I'm betting he 's sure he will find cancer this time tho. ETA, I appreciate your input and will mention these things to my doc.I'll keep you posted, if you like. sure. I'd really like you to ask him about a prostate MRI to better localize any concerning areas before he goes doing a bunch of needle sticks. there might be more to your story that I don't know, but I'm really not excited about you going through yet another biopsy for this reason without other studies or treatments.. I'm not too excited about it either. Last time he took aboout 12 pices, felt like he was shooting a staple gun in my ass each time. But the ball is rolling. |
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This would depend a little on family history. Did your dad have prostate problems? Grandpa? Uncle? Are you white? Usually we're recommending around 45 for the first PSA and rectal exam. Its main effect is adding fluid to the ejaculate. The nerves that control erections and ejaculation run very closely to the prostate, so when you have the prostate removed surgically you have a relatively high chance of being impotent afterward. There are "nerve sparing" surgeries that are performed to aid in maximizing the chance of keeping erections. Incontinence is also a risk of having your prostate treated, but mainly because the sphincters that control urination are on either side of the prostate and may end up being damaged or removed when the prostate is treated. You also cannot ejaculate without a prostate (though you can still orgasm) So to answer a little more directly, the prostate only aids in adding fluid to ejaculate, but you can have problems with ED and incontinence from treating the prostate because of its relation to other important structures. Quoted:
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Thanks for offering your time jmmcoy. I have total newbie questions (I just turned 41). 1. At what age do you recommend a first prostate exam? 2. Beyond creating prostate fluid, what does this gland do? I mean, if it gets removed, does it render you incapable of an erection? Incontinent? I genuinely don't know. This would depend a little on family history. Did your dad have prostate problems? Grandpa? Uncle? Are you white? Usually we're recommending around 45 for the first PSA and rectal exam. Its main effect is adding fluid to the ejaculate. The nerves that control erections and ejaculation run very closely to the prostate, so when you have the prostate removed surgically you have a relatively high chance of being impotent afterward. There are "nerve sparing" surgeries that are performed to aid in maximizing the chance of keeping erections. Incontinence is also a risk of having your prostate treated, but mainly because the sphincters that control urination are on either side of the prostate and may end up being damaged or removed when the prostate is treated. You also cannot ejaculate without a prostate (though you can still orgasm) So to answer a little more directly, the prostate only aids in adding fluid to ejaculate, but you can have problems with ED and incontinence from treating the prostate because of its relation to other important structures. Very informative. Thank you sir. |
| What is the simple blood test for prostate cancer, and how does that compare to some of the other tests? It's been a few years since I've had blood work done (getting it done this Friday though), but I seem to remember a blood test that can be done on the same sample from your cholesterol check. |
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Quoted: Werent you also in a melanoma thread a while back? Quoted: Quoted: Well, I had a radical surgery in 2003. That sucker is gone. You can ask me about the results. Levitra is my friend. I caught it when I was 50. Werent you also in a melanoma thread a while back? I may have been...did have that issue at the same time I had the prostate cancer..
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This came up just the other day in the ER. Dude had had a laminectomy. Comes back to the ER saying he cannot urinate. Foley cath goes in and solves the problem temporarily. Urologist comes in and gives the guy the finger-up-the-butt trick. Urologist says the prostate is not inflamed. Not 10 minutes later, Internal Med doc comes in. He also goes with the finger up the but. However, IM says the prostate is way enlarged. Moral of the story... This is exactly why I will not let my doc check my prostate. My PSA was 1.0, so nothing to worry about. No finger up there until it becomes more than a guessing game. NB I have had an ambien, if this story makes no sense, that's why
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What is the simple blood test for prostate cancer, and how does that compare to some of the other tests? It's been a few years since I've had blood work done (getting it done this Friday though), but I seem to remember a blood test that can be done on the same sample from your cholesterol check. The PSA is the blood test we usually use. There's a newer test for a specific DNA/RNA but it's not really in wide use at the moment. |
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This came up just the other day in the ER. Dude had had a laminectomy. Comes back to the ER saying he cannot urinate. Foley cath goes in and solves the problem temporarily. Urologist comes in and gives the guy the finger-up-the-butt trick. Urologist says the prostate is not inflamed. Not 10 minutes later, Internal Med doc comes in. He also goes with the finger up the but. However, IM says the prostate is way enlarged. Moral of the story... This is exactly why I will not let my doc check my prostate. My PSA was 1.0, so nothing to worry about. No finger up there until it becomes more than a guessing game. NB I have had an ambien, if this story makes no sense, that's why We have a different idea of what's abnormal compared to an internist. We also feel a lot more of them than they do... I'd trust a urologist over an internist when it comes to the prostate, or any other urologic issue. |
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I went to an annual checkup a couple of years ago. I was 64 then. Found out I had elevated PSA. It was 8.6. I really had no symptoms to speak of.
I went to the urologist and did the biopsy thing and was diagnosed with low medium aggressiveness. I chose to get the rad treatment instead of removing the prostate. Went through five weeks of daily rad treatment and then had the seed implants. Nowadays by PSA is less than 1.0. The only real side effect is I take a Flowmax pill once a day to help with urine flow. The urologist said I should be able to wean myself off the pills. It is important to get that yearly checkup. I don't care what the experts say about PSA may not be necessary. What I learned in my little ordeal is that some prostate cancers are more aggressive than others. It is best not to assume that if you get the cancer it will be too slow growing to be a concern. Get the PSA test yearly, even if you have to pay for it yourself. |
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I have heard different things regarding screening. What is the best approach? Quoted:
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If anyone's interested, I'm happy to answer any questions you guys have about prostate cancer or PSA screening. Consider it a free consultation with a urologist. I have heard different things regarding screening. What is the best approach? The best approach is to have a conversation with your urologist regarding your desires. I mentioned above how it can lead down a path to treatment, which you may not like the results of (impotence, incontinence). Depending on your family history, you may be at a higher risk for a more aggressive cancer that requires intervention. It's clear that intervening earlier gives better results, but not all early cancers require intervention. Some people are comfortable with the idea that they could be living with prostate cancer. Some people want it out as soon as possible. My personal choice will be to test regularly once I'm 45-50, then stop once I'm 65 or so. If I develop it while I'm young I'd be more willing to have it treated. If I'm older, I'll just die with it. I'd like to catch it early, then decide how much treatment I want. |
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My personal choice will be to test regularly once I'm 45-50, then stop once I'm 65 or so. If I develop it while I'm young I'd be more willing to have it treated. If I'm older, I'll just die with it. I'd like to catch it early, then decide how much treatment I want. What if you have a high Gleason score and it is an aggressive cancer? That may mean it could spread and you get bladder cancer or worse. People do die of prostate cancer when left untreated. |
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Diagnosed at age 54 in 2001. Prostate removed. Radiation treatment and chemical therapy for the past dozen years. Have never been declared "cured". My older brother diagnosed four years ago. He is now cancer free. My best friend diagnosed this year. Had surgery this summer....healing. Don't ignore the symptoms. Follow your doctor's advise regarding examinations. |
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Quoted: Unfortunately, nothing. There are general health things that may have a slightly protective effect, like a healthy diet & exercise, not smoking, etc, but overall there are no specific risk factors for prostate cancer that can be altered by your habits. That's why we check PSA -- you can't alter your risk, but we can detect it relatively early usually. Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: If anyone's interested, I'm happy to answer any questions you guys have about prostate cancer or PSA screening. Consider it a free consultation with a urologist. What PREVENTATIVE measures can be taken against Prostate Cancer? Unfortunately, nothing. There are general health things that may have a slightly protective effect, like a healthy diet & exercise, not smoking, etc, but overall there are no specific risk factors for prostate cancer that can be altered by your habits. That's why we check PSA -- you can't alter your risk, but we can detect it relatively early usually. So the old "discharge" myth is just a myth and not a daily goal?
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So the old "discharge" myth is just a myth and not a daily goal?
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If anyone's interested, I'm happy to answer any questions you guys have about prostate cancer or PSA screening. Consider it a free consultation with a urologist. What PREVENTATIVE measures can be taken against Prostate Cancer? Unfortunately, nothing. There are general health things that may have a slightly protective effect, like a healthy diet & exercise, not smoking, etc, but overall there are no specific risk factors for prostate cancer that can be altered by your habits. That's why we check PSA -- you can't alter your risk, but we can detect it relatively early usually. So the old "discharge" myth is just a myth and not a daily goal?
I don't think there's any solid evidence to support it |
I had "low flow" and went to see a GP who drew blood and did a PSA - came back elevated. Off to the urologist who said there were serum indicators and suggested a biopsy. PSA was almost 9, 6 of 12 cores were positive and a Gleason of 7. I choose to have an open prostatectomy so the doctor could "feel" my prostate and decide the margins he needed to take versus the impersonal nature of the DaVinci. Results were excellent, I don't pee on myself and junk still works.  I was diagnosed in 2009 at age 52 with no history in the family. Get checked fellas!
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