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Color Doppler Transrectal Ultrasound

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Posted 9/3/2010 12:51 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks JohnT,better said than I,great analogy. I hope all newbies will avail themselves to this test,can't hurt, will clarify some things for them [biopsy or not]. It helped JonhT after 10 yrs pinpointed cancer all the rest had missed. I really don't see the downside.most here are getting grayscale ultrasounds,biopsy and then usually repeat [like shampooing your hair isn't it clean the first time or do they just want you to use more,women might understand this analogy better
then guys LOL].

Anyway.....Any guys on the fence about CDU try it I assure you it will make a difference,and if you can see Lee or Bahn all the better. Check out voluteer's[windquest] posts,mine and JohnT also ohiostate's[his posts are a little older}. Don't just line up for your regular biopsy,thats what most would suggest [for alot of reasons]
Posted 9/3/2010 3:49 PM (GMT 0)
Thanks for the discussion. I'm one of those guys on the fence. I'll definitely discuss with my doctor at my next visit. I'm not really troubled by a particular clinician not publishing studies, maybe it's just not his thing. He can still be an expert at what he does, IMO. I did come across some CDU videos by googling "color doppler prostate" and clicking on the "video" tab, if anyone wants to see what they look like. There is a short one from WebMD that gives the basic idea.

I'm also not looking for the ultimate answer regarding AS decision from CDU. To me, CDU appears to be a good technique but still has to be considered in the context of all the other relevant patient history, as pointed out in other discussions on this forum.
Posted 9/3/2010 4:23 PM (GMT 0)
I will continue to have disagreements on this forum as to the amount of evidence required to justify a new technique or treatment. To some, 20 years of data is not enough, and unless there are numerous studies with thousands of participants they won't acccept the evidence.

I have a different philosphy in fighting this disease. If a new treatment or diagnostic looks promissing and superior to what is currently out there and is endorsed by a skilled professional that has been treating prostate cancer patients for many years, I'll use it. I'm not going to sit around for 15 or 20 years gathering data or use some old technology just because it has a lot of data behind it, but is clearly inferior. This approach has worked very well for me, as spending 10 years working with the old protocols gained me nothing and almost cost me my life. The newer protocols such as color doppler, and combidex gave me information about my disease and treatment that none of the older proven protocols came close to giving me. None of my doctors over a 10 year time period even mentioned these as possibilities.The newer protocols of combination seeding/IMRT/HT has given me the quality of life far superior to the recommended surgical removal with an equal or superior chance of total cure. If my PC does progress I will search out the latestest treatments and diagonostics that show evidence of being superior.

This is a philosophical difference in thinking that may never be reconciled. I can only make the information available to those who wish to investigate them futher.

JohnT

 

Posted 9/3/2010 5:51 PM (GMT 0)
John like in your own journey real founded evidence trumped all those 'experts', proven them irrelevant in their expertise to some decent degree in your case huge degree and maybe life or death differences. Testimony is very refreshing to hear in PCa, especially when a patient shows the egg on their faces.

Post Edited (zufus) : 9/3/2010 11:58:54 AM (GMT-6)

Posted 9/3/2010 8:01 PM (GMT 0)
Ditto....... JohnT, excellent points, very well said [as usual]. Its frustrating to me to see the mindset of some! Here's a noninvasive test, not overly expensive,not new technology,done by a Dr with years of experience [in Dr Lees case has PCa] and its debated like its something weird! I felt that Volunteer was helped by the knowledge of CDU and maybe others, so that should be enough [I guess]..... Barring any real issues like lack of money or problems with traveling to see one of these Dr, its a no brainer in my opinion!!! I will continue to post now and then about CDU to maybe catch one of the newbies and hopefully some will benefit!

Yours [JohnT] was one of the firsts posts I read about CDU and I'm grateful I researched it and my husband had one, it made a big difference to us. Thank You!!!!!!
Posted 9/3/2010 8:26 PM (GMT 0)
cooper,

since when was having a prostate biopsy a bad thing? in our day and age, its still an important and needed tool to properly dx. PC. I have no objections to the use of CDU, when and if needed, and where it is available. There are reports and study that clearly shows that its not a perfect test either, and it can miss PC's that only a biopsy is going to find. Telling people about "lining" up for their biopsies is very condenscending at best. In reality, CDU is an extreme minority test in use with PC, where the biopsy is accepted norm.

P.S>  I see you are still "new" with 43 posts, a long time back, the moderators suggested that we don't use the term "newbie" with our new friends here, as some of them found that term offensive, so we try not to use the term when possible.

Post Edited (Purgatory) : 9/3/2010 2:30:19 PM (GMT-6)

Posted 9/3/2010 10:21 PM (GMT 0)
Sorry Purgatory...........Didn't mean to offend anyone at all, I saw the term newbie [not my own] and thought it was acceptable.

I guess I don't go along with the accepted norm! If I'm not mistaken most biopsies are ultrasound guided so why not color ultrasound guided? I wasn't saying that a person doesn't need a biopsy,[I kinda do think its a bad thing],when my husband had the CDU,Dr Lees office said be prepared to have a biopsy!!In expert hands I believe they can see more,and only biopsy if needed and then usually only 6 cores at most.When my husband had a elevated psa the UDoc didn't want to hear anything about CDU and called quite a few times asking when he wanted to schedule his procedure [biopsy]His gray scale ultrasound showed 3 areas [which covered the whole prostate] which were suspicious, Dr Lee found none. So what exactly were they going to biopsy [that was our ?] We had a [almost] bad experience following the so called norm and its not for us! Just trying to spare guys,repeated biopsies which also seems to be the norm if the doc doesn't get a positive right away!

again didn't mean to offend!

Hope your surgery goes well, I'll keep you in my thoughts and prayers! Hey I teared up when I read about your son trying to make sure you got to that [car show?] sounds like a good son!!!! Good Luck , cooper
Posted 9/3/2010 11:50 PM (GMT 0)
Enthusiasm about cdu sounds great; I hope it is warranted. But I don’t think anybody knows. It reminds me a lot of enthusiasm for proton beam therapy. People who have benefited from it are wildly enthusiastic, but we have no reliable evidence demonstrating its advantages; only anecdotal evidence. No reasonable person will happily rely on anecdotal evidence, but when the evidence is shaky all around, why not?

I went to a university of pennsylvania facility a while back, which had recently invested more than 100 million dollars in proton therapy, and did not seem worried about money. When I asked the radiologist why they don’t use color doppler, she said that she did not see any advantage. They had color doppler, but they did not bother using it with prostate stuff.

All that said, I might use color doppler myself, but not because I feel particularly enlightened about its value. Maybe it will work. Who knows?
Posted 9/4/2010 3:11 AM (GMT 0)
Purg.....Still sorry about the newbie word but if I'm going to get my hand slapped there's a few others posting using it! Get your ruler out!! [sorry smarta@# answer]
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