Prostate cancer questions

A good friend of mine has been diagnosed with Prostate cancer, he is 47. The PSA numbers have been creeping up for 5 years. He finally got a biopsy and it came back positive for cancer.
Any of you guys been diagnosed with prostate cancer? This friend of mine will be having his prostate taken out, likely in the next few weeks or months. This friend of mine is in good shape and active, not overweight either.

A buddy of mine was diagnosed about 7 years ago, opted for the surgery and had it removed. He is doing fine. He is 56 now.

My dad had the surgery 20 years ago. He is 93 now and doing ok.

Been there done that.I had mine out 7 years ago and all is well with that.Got a rupture or hernia where the draw plug was at on one side and that has never been right after that surgery.Tell him to take his time after this as far as lifting and tugging and he will be fine.God Lord and friends are always another plus.

Have your friend read everything he can find, and consult with everyone he can. There are options other than prostatectomy, but I don't know about them. I do know that when your prostate is gone, a part of your life is changed forever. In fact, it may be gone forever. However, death from cancer is also forever.

Had lathroscopic robotic surgery in 2008. In hospital 2 nights. Quick recovery. Several small incisions. May never have one function back but am confident cancer is gone.

e-mail is open.

My dad's twin brother was diagnosed about 5 years ago. They opted to have radioactive "seeds" implanted between "the boys and the back door". He has had a clean bill of health for quite a while now. Weird thing - he wasn't allowed to have the grand kids on his lap for a certain amount of time (or the dog).

I had mine removed two weeks ago today. I have a bag strapped to my leg which is hooked up to a catheter up my you know what. It was suppose to come out a week ago but they decided to leave it in till this Thurs. To me, thats been the worst part so far. I can't lift over 10#, drive a tractor, motorcycle. or my bicycle for 6 more weeks. Although I have been doing a little cultivating and driving around with the loader tractor for short periods of time, in first gear of corse. I'm just glad its over and I'm feeling better every day. The lab said they got it all as it was confined to my prostate.
Like others said you got to read up on it and make an informed decision. I took a month to decide which option to take. I ended up at the University Of Michigan cancer clinic and had robotic, nerve sparing surgery there. So far so good. Its still Fanny when you see people or friends and you tell them what you got, they give you a look like,holy cow, your going to die. Theres something about that word"cancer" that scares everyone. I plan to live a good many years when I get over this bump in the road. I'll be 62 next month. Just tell your friend to read up on it and get treatment and he should be fine, especially at his young age.

A classmate of mine had his frozen. That way radiation could still be a later option. Good luck.

My 64 year old neighbor had his taken out mid may last year, wasn't sopposed to lift much befor the operation, I did all the filling of the drill. He came through it just fine, the dr gave him a very strict 6 week scedual to follow. And he did just as he was told, all checkups came out good, and he slowly progressed back into the work load of farming and raising cattle.

Had the same treatment back in 01. Doc said it was in early stage when they caught it. Tests have been clear since. Took a week off work, then back on the road. Retired about a year later.
Willie

At only 47, he would probably still like all things to function & that removes most options. Sometimes the nerve sparing robotic surgery will achieve that, mostly. If it is confined & not too far advanced, he should "choose any method he wants as long as it is proton radiation therapy". Least invasive by far, far less peripherial damage than IMRT, conventional radiation, seeds, certainly surgery, or any others. At 70, done a year ago and ALL systems functional and I'm not alone, know others. I could never recommend anything else in the way of prostate cancer treatment. Many doctors will recommend whatever method they practice or their group of associates practice, so you have to keep your eyes open, ask questions, do your research, since the doctors often are not your best help in selecting method of treatment. Google Proton radiation therapy and find much info, maybe start with Loma Linda University Medical Center. There are more & more facilities doing proton therapy everyday, but they are no where as common as old conventional X-ray radiation. Besides the lesser damage overall, it is so much more focused as to do very minimal damage to nearby parts of the body, including tissue that radiation must pass through to get to the target.

Surgery would be the last resort. Surgery usually means lifelong trouble -incontinence and ED. JMOR below is exactly correct and explained PROTON BEAM better than I can. I had Prostate Cancer; PSA up to 11.5 in 2001. Had proton beam at LLUMC in 2002, have been baling hay and throwing hay ever since - including two days after my last treatment. I had work mates that had surgery, seeds, and Cryo. All are messed up for life.

I worked for one of the companies that manufacture the radioactive seeds for 7 years. (Manufactured in Buford GA) They have a very good track record for curing (Killing) cancer. There are 2 different types of seeds. Some are radioactive iodine and the other is made from a radioactive isotope from Palladium 103. Less problems after the implant versus surgery to remove the prostate. Like was said below, surgeons like to do surgery. Read up and make your decision. Best of luck!

The reason he could not have the kids or the dog on his lap was the seeds are emitting radiation for about 17 days. Palladium seeds have a 17 day half life and are almost all spent in that amount of time.

I had the seed implant and hormone therapy in 2005 and am doing fine.

Roger and Wilie,
I had a total prostatectomy 5 years agao at age 55. Off work 2 months. Everything is fine now ecept ED. There really is no such thing as nerve sparing surgery-All men have ED after and with most it never goes away. I chose to have implants to solve the problem. Best thing I ever did. My wife is 10 years younger and she and I are better now than we were before the surgery. Google AMS 700. I like it so much I speak at mens health seminars around the midwest. It has given me back my manhood.

email [email protected]

Michael

He should get a second opinion from an oncologist. Most likely he's talking to a urologist if he's going the surgical route.

My BIL was diagnosed with prostate cancer a little over a year ago. He wanted to have proton therapy, but insurance wouldn't pay for it so he went with a different radiation treatment. I told him he needed to make a decision: "Which do you love more, your prostate or your cigarettes?" He didn't answer. My guess is he'll be back for surgery in a few years.

I'm not saying your wrong or your right about the nerve sparing surgery. A lot can happen in Five years and the technology improves everyday. I have a list of people along with a personal friend that have no problem in the erectile function after the operation at UofM. I'm hoping I have no problem there either but time will tell. To each his own though, my brother had good luck with the seeds 12 years ago so that is a good option too.

"All men have ED after"

Respectfully speaking, that's a pretty broad statement. If it works good before surgery, there's a good chance of it working after surgery, providing you go to a competent surgeon. Don't mistake this for criticism - I'm glad the method you chose is working well for you.

You'll get lots of biased opinions about prostate procedures on a tractor website. These opinions will give you ideas to check out. Do your own research. Folks are saying that a surgeon is only interested in removal, but each specialist is gonna market his own specialty. Write down a big list of questions to ask each specialist. The questions that you should be asking are easily found with an internet search. To the original poster - I'm saying "you" but referring to your friend.

As far as incontinence - it is NOT a certainty that you'll have that problem after prostate removal.

For the record - I had prostate removal surgery (can't spell the proper word) two years ago. If I could do it over, I wouldn't change a thing.

I'm glad to see that this discussion has not gotten out of hand. This is a common problem for men, and one that should be peacefully and openly discussed, but maybe the moderators are wishing, "Not here."

Best wishes to all.

I had the cancer diagnosed in July 2008 and since the prostate was so enlarged the Dr. wanted to freeze it. Went for a second opinion and found out that freezing can be very dangerous in large prostates. Ended up taking radiation and refusing the hormone shots afterward. Had dome bleeding problem and incontinance for several year. Still have trouble controlling my bowels but I am glad I went for a second opinion. The new radiation takes on half as long and does half to damage I am told by my oncologist.

My friend Len and I both had surgery 12 years ago in our mid 50s. My psa was just a shade over 4.0 so caught it early. His was higher - caught it to late and he died a year later at age 56. It can be real aggressive if when you're younger. In Len's case, a different treatment may have had better results. In my case, I knew it was early and if I could get cancer out of my body that's what I wanted. Worked out well for me - would have missed a lot of life including my grandkids.

(quoted from post at 17:26:37 07/09/13) A good friend of mine has been diagnosed with Prostate cancer, he is 47. The PSA numbers have been creeping up for 5 years. He finally got a biopsy and it came back positive for cancer.
Any of you guys been diagnosed with prostate cancer? This friend of mine will be having his prostate taken out, likely in the next few weeks or months. This friend of mine is in good shape and active, not overweight either.

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[b:40845ce718]DISCLAIMER[/b:40845ce718]: I am not a doctor or alternative medicine fanatic/purveyor and none of the following is AMA or FDA approved, just based on my experience.[i:40845ce718] Usually the first signs of prostate enlargement are reduced urine flow and 'other' fluids. About 25 (I was in my late 30's or early 40's, as I recall) years ago I had those symptoms and the urologist said I'd 'just have to live with it' until my psa got higher (thus needing - Ka-ching?- 'treatment'?) and tried to set me up with regular check-ups. I swear I could see his pupils light up with $$$$$$$$ ! I went home and told my wife of the time what he had said and she muttered an expletive that I will not repeat here, went off to the local health food store and came back with a bottle of 60 capsules of a herb called 'pygeum' - directions said '1 capsule twice a day'. OK, I did it and no longer had a problem after 3 days. The info that came with the bottle said that the curative power of the herb and practical application thereof was discovered years ago by the Germans in their African colony and further stated that an enlarged prostate is initially caused by a buildup of cholesterol in the prostate and that the Africans had been using pygeum for many years for curing the condition and flushing it from the prostate; it did that for me as well. It seems like there are certain times of the year when the symptoms like to appear with me but I smack 'em at the first hint with pygeum (getting hard to find - 'endangered species' and all) or cascara sagrada or one of the prepared commercial fixes like the one Joe T. represents.[/i:40845ce718]

I'm not saying to use this to replace conventional treatment but to use it (or another herb) early on so your prostate never reaches 'critical mass' - 'an ounce of prevention ....... ' sort of thing. Good luck to all

Dad had prostate cancer in 1982. Still around today! Did loose the ability though! He was in hospital longer for blood clots after than the source diagnosis! He had a softball size lump no where near the prostate, so they had all kinds of trouble figuring where it originated! One of his treatments was estrogen, gave him blood clots pretty quick and badly! Was given Coumadin for the clots, which gave all kinds of other side affects as well!

You guys are great. I will be informing my buddy about the alternatives listed here.
I personally am looking into changing my diet to a more alkaline and less acidic level. The top foods/drinks are Alcohol, coffee, red meat and dairy that can be the cause of prostate cancer. I need to eat the foods that reduce this. I do not want to have this creep up on me and have to get my prostate out in 10 or 20 years. I have no symptoms yet, with a PSA level of 1 now, I just hope it stays there.