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Finished SRT

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Posted 4/4/2013 7:20 PM (GMT 0)
Today I had my 39th and final SRT session on the Varian RapidArc for a total of 70.2 Gys. The first 3 were frightening, the next 3 bothersome, the last 33 routine and uneventful. The only SEs I had were slight rectal irritation and a bit of tiredness at the end. I think nearly daily gym workouts helped.

The techs were great. I took them a cake afterwards and we had a little celebration.

I felt happier after my surgery. Now I'm glad the radiation is done, but it's back to the PSA waiting game. I've gained a lot of respect for the tenacity of this disease. I'm thinking of it as a chronic condition that you have to stay on top of.

My first PSA is in 3 months. Hope to enjoy my life and play a lot of golf between now and then.
Posted 4/4/2013 7:26 PM (GMT 0)
That's great. Best wishes to you on the upcoming PSA.
I was going through some old papers the other day and found the "graduation" certificate the therapists and nurses signed for me on my last visit.
Posted 4/4/2013 7:34 PM (GMT 0)
Way to go, now that you are done, you can truly see that its more of an endurance contest, once you get into the daily routine.

Take a good break, and hopefully you will see some good results at your next PSA test, hope it ends up being the curative thing for you.

david
Posted 4/4/2013 8:01 PM (GMT 0)
Congrats, reachout!
I hope the SRT did its thing.
Jeff
Posted 4/4/2013 11:42 PM (GMT 0)
Congrats on the completion of your rt. You were lucky thus far with the se and I hope your luck holds out on your 3 month checkup. When I had mine, the Dr expected my PSA to be down by about 50%, after completion, to indicate success.

Wishing you a complete recovery.

Mag

Posted 4/4/2013 11:58 PM (GMT 0)
Congratulations on your completion and return to life without a half hour or more of every weekday dedicated to the Varian or other machine interrupting up your plans. Good luck with the results. Did you have a hint of sadness on your last day knowing you we're going to miss the techs?

Paul
Posted 4/5/2013 12:24 AM (GMT 0)
Paul, I did feel sadness today and couldn't figure out why. Yes, I think I'm going to miss the techs, they're great people and we had a lot of laughs together and discussions of the day's sports news. I'll also miss the feeling that I was actively doing something every day to fight the PC, and now I'm just in a waiting mode.

Sure hope I get the good results some of you have gotten. Just don't want to get my hopes up too high.
Posted 4/5/2013 4:02 AM (GMT 0)
Congratulations reachout! I know from a different post that we started radiation the same time. However, mine was adjunct radiation, instead of your SRT, and I finished three weeks ago.

But I do understand your comment that it doesn't feel like you're actively fighting PC, but just hanging around waiting now. It's an odd feeling and I was thinking about posting my ambivalence about this period when I read this.

Let's hope we've both knocked out the beast and that our waiting period is just a small bump on our journey. Congrats for finishing!
Posted 4/5/2013 4:38 AM (GMT 0)
Isn't it great to have that done? The waiting game is the problem with radiation - it gets to me from time to time.

You'll make it and congratulations on getting to the end.

All the best,
Andrew
Posted 4/6/2013 6:03 PM (GMT 0)
I am glad I found this forum and particularly the posts on SRT. I just found out that my PSA (post 10/2009 RRP) just went above >0.2 ng/ml. On Monday, I see the Oncologist and have spent the morning researching the internet.

@Reachout: Since you just finished, how are feeling now? Are you able to go about life just as before or are you experiencing a bit of a challenge to get through an entire day?

All others: During your SRT, could you have worked a full day or would you advise taking time off?
Posted 4/6/2013 7:05 PM (GMT 0)
Gary, I'm just feeling a little tired and have rectal soreness. The tiredness only began over the last week and it's far from debilitating. In fact, I just returned from the gym, and am doing everything I would normally do. I've already signed up for a Tuesday tee time.

And even though I'm retired I still do a little consulting and the SRT never interfered with that. The rectal soreness is the worst. Again, nothing serious but every morning it feels like I had spicy Mexican food the night before. I use lots of prep H suppositories and prescription cortisone ones as needed. I'm told all of this will clear up in a couple of weeks.

If you're over .2, SRT is likely in your future. Don't wait too long, from what I've read the best results are under 0.5.
Posted 4/6/2013 11:09 PM (GMT 0)
Thank you. Yes, I do think that SRT is the best option now and as much as I rather not go through it, the possibility that this might prolong my life and possibly eradicate the Cancer is enough to start ASAP.

I should state (for the record) and for comparing stats, we are very similar (except that I am 53). My PSA (pre and post) and Biopsy are almost identical. But, my margins were not clear-very small rupture on the side. Also, there were no significant side effects from the surgery (after healing) and I would say I am 99% the same in terms of continence and sexual function.

So, it is with dismay that this is now the next step because I thought I escaped the clinches (as I am sure you understand), even though my Urologist said SRT would be a wise thing to elect to do given the rupture. He and I made an agreement that if the PSA went above .2 it would be time. I tested monthly from July to Dec 2012, with no change and then when we went back to every 3 months and the last one was higher cry

Again, thank you for you time and I wish you a healthy and long life!
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