PSA and Cycling Question

Hey all, for those of you who remember me and my craziness, I'm back. For those who don't, i had my first biopsy 5 months ago, which came back negative for PCa, but positive in one core of 14, for Hi Grade PIN. My PSA at the time, had risen from .7 three years earlier, to 2.2 at the time of the biopsy.

So its time for my follow up, which is this coming week, and I'm getting nervous, as i fully expect the PSA to be up again, since it has been up each time the took it, 4 tests over three years. This time i am going to a different doc, Dr Aaron Katz, who is Chairman of Urology at Winthrop. He has a focus on homeopathic treatment and has been involved in studies of a herbal compound that they think may lessen the chances of Hi Grade Pin turning into PCa. So I think its worth seeing him. Then i'll decide whether to stick with him, or the guy i saw at Columbia Presbyterian, for the biopsy.

Anyway, sorry for the longwinded story, my question is this......i was careful not to have sex for 5 days before i took the PSA bloodwork. (i take the bloodwork before seeing him, so we have something to talk about (or not) when i am there). So thats good. But i realized today, that 2 days prior to the blood being taken - actually about 38 hours prior, i did a one hour spinning (cycling) class.

Anybody know if this is going to create a higher reading than whats real?

I know i shouldn't be all edgy about this whole thing after what you all  have been through, but its hard for me not to be anticipating. I have enormous respect for you guys who are here and have been diagnosed, not just because of how you soldier thru this stuff, but because of how you are always here to help others.

Thanks in advance for any replies

Hello Pratoman, Welcome back. We've missed you.

There is no need for you to surf the rest of the internet. You can get all the different opinions about pre-psa activities right here on the forum. Some guys here will tell you that you should wrap yourself in cotton batting and duct tape, and refuse to get out of bed for a week before your bloodwork. Others will point to studies that have shown that, while the patient's pre-bloodwork activities can have a small effect on the numerical value of the PSA that difference is almost never enough to make a clinical difference.

My position is that you should abstain from sex for 48 hours before you get your blood drawn and you shouldn't ride you bike over twenty miles of bumpy gravel road to get to the clinic, but aside from that not to worry too much. There'a always going to be something. (Cold medicine makes your PSA go up.) It'll average out.

Welcome back, I remember you.
What is spinning? Just kidding, I know.
I just wanted to welcome you back to our world, the world of nervous anticipation of PSA results.
You may become a card carrying member of our club eventually, let's just hope it isn't your time yet.

Good Luck

Bill from Florida

Thanks guys. I guess i will just let the doc know and let him make his judgements. My guess is that it makes a difference, but not a significant clinical diff.
BTW i did a lot of research, on DRE prior to blood draw (the doc that did my biopsy, had done that), it seems that the difference in readings when doing the DRE first is an increase, but not clinically significant in degree..

I think i will post a new thread with some of the stuff i found on the subject, so not to hijack my own thread.

Thanks Trep