F/U From Bone Scan and MRI

Hi all,

Thanks for reading this!

Well went to see Radiation Oncologist (Preeti Parhar) at MSKCC.  Looks lilke we are going to do SRT. First want to check with another oncologist to see if hormone therapy if appropriate at this time.  I was told that SRT has about a 40% cure rate.  A little different from my expectations as sent by Dr Scardino.  Also learned of the side effects of hormone therapy.  From my perspective the news is getting progressively worse.

I will see the second oncologist on 2/25, and then we will have a plan.  I just want to start the treatment.  I am starting to hope it is just SRT for the 5days/7weeks.

I am lucky I am at a good company.  After hearing some horror stories about SRT and the exhaustion people feel, I am planning on taking short-term disability for the last three weeks.  How long does it take to recover? 

I sure hope this works!  With two 10 year old boys and a 13 year old daughter I still have a lot to do!

All the best folks!

Actually, 40% is an overly optimistic "cure" rate for SRT. I was told, and have read of it being more in the 30% range. Depends which RO you talk to. In my case, my SRT was only given about a 20% chance of it working. Aside from being administered wrong, it utterly failed in less than 9 months. The whole problem, is that in most cases, the RO's do not know for sure where any remaining cancer is located, its an educated guess at best in my opinion. I was zapped with 72 gys in my prostate bed, and obviously, the PC wasn't even there in the first place. It's a bit of a gamble no matter how you look at it.

There are men, for whom SRT has worked very well, but its a crap shoot, and if you undertake it, you are hoping to be one of those men, but the other gamble is to what extent of side effects and/or damage may occur, either treatments, after treatments, or even long term damage that might not show up for years.

Best bet, is to make sure you need it in the first place, as for surgery guys, its their last curative card to play.

The arguments of SRT alone, or SRT with HT, go around and around, again, depends what RO's you are talking to. Good arguments can be made in either camp, that's a tough decision in itself.

Good luck, there's no straight forward clear cut answer to SRT. You got to do what is right for you, and hope for the best.

david in sc

NoExpectations,
I worked all the way through radiation treatments -- it was very doable for me. I kept exercising all the way through. That helped. My SEs ('roids and urgency) actually peaked the week after I finished and then subsided within another week. Good luck!

I really don't think you will need the short term disability. Not really sure what people report as fatigue, because it is not a very precise word. To me, fatigue means I can't hold my head up, and can't get out if bed.

I may have taken a nap here and there while watching TV, but like many, I worked every day, with no problem. I did mine at 8 in the morning, stopped at McDonalds for a coffee, and went to work. Little burning when peeing, but really no significant side effects.

Good luck.

I just don't get the negative envisaging, never have , never will, but honestly hope those who do, are not successful in said envisaging. I literally am shaking my head, do not get it. Is it a reverse pride or something

I had SRT about 2 years ago.  I had my treatments at 7 AM each morning, then went to the gym for a brisk 3 mile walk on the treadmill.  I never had any fatigue issues nor did any of the other guys in the waiting room.  If you are in good shape to begin with, you should breeze right on through the procedure.  Here is a link to an article by Dr B. Lawenda, a radiation oncologist in AZ: http://www.integrativeoncology-essentials.com/2012/08/exercise-and-cancer-101-why-you-should-just-do-it/.  He encourages a healthy diet and plenty of excercise, before, during and after treatment.

NoExp. Good luck with your decision making. I'm currently doing SRT (first week done) and started ADT back in October. I'm tolerating both very well. The ADT started with a few mild hot flashes but as of the last month or so I can't remember having one. I'm a little more tired by days end but nothing an extra hour sleep doesn't fix. The low sex drive is a drag but just means we have to mark it down on the calendar and stick to it... Almost like rehab after surgery... You do it even if you don't feel like it... But in the end its worth it.
As for kids, I know exactly where you are coming from, I have an 8 year old boy and 12 year old girl... Both of which have busy schedules.
Good luck with your decision and always look for those positive posts, sometimes we all glaze over them and focus on the bad numbers.

Hi all,

Thanks so much for all the feedback. It is great to hear the varying perspectives. I am talking to some leading experts including Peter Scardino ay Memorial Sloan Kettering. I am going to rely on the guidance of these experts to do whatever has the best long-term prognosis.

As far as working through whatever the treatment is, I will want to minimize stress and my job is all stress. So, if I can take time off and spend time focused on being active vs sedentary at my desk repressing frustrations, I am going to do that.

I'll keep everyone interested informed.

All the best,

Paul