0.097 first post RP PSA at 3 months

I've read that 0.1 raises the red flag. I don't find 0.03 at all reassuring. Appt with uro next month with one more PSA test before that. So how much anxiety is reasonable over the next month.

What is the significance of such an early reading? It might as well be 0.1. Such an early reading suggests persistence rather than recurrence and that is almost certainly metastatic disease and given the margins were clear, the disease is probably non-local.

How's that analysis sound to you people?

I'm 63 vigorous and cheerful. I over-imbibe but otherwise I live a healthy life with lots of moderate exercise. How long do I have to live?

I'm hanging on here but this really puts a damper on my otherwise good life.

My profile is not coming up in the preview so I'll paste it below. Please excuse me if it's a double post.

Thank you

post rp pathologist's report Nov 2013
-negative margins
- 3+4
-pt3a for extraprostatic extension
-perineural invasion
-lymphatic(small vessel) invasion but lymph nodes negative (what?)
-http://nomograms.mskcc.org/Prostate/PostRadicalProstatectomy.aspx - 17% chance of recurrence in 10 years
-some stress incontinence when drinking alcohol
-with daily 5mg cialis 1/3 erection

clear something up for me. what does your second sentence have to do with your post. Somethings missing. Is the postop psa .097 or .03. If it is .097, you are right , it may as well be .1. having said that, it could be a bad test, it could be a sloppy job of removing benign prostate tissue, blah, blah. Your statement of metatastic disease, holds no water. There is a difference between systemic and metastic. Systemic could become metastic and sooner than later, or later than sooner, or never at all depending on Gleason score of the cells involved. 3+4 means more 3 than 4, so odds are with you if most are 3 as they rarely become metastic. Anyway, study up on the disease, the more you know about your specific situation and where it fits in the scope of this disease, the less fear you will have. Bottom line, you are extremely treatable, so as to have a long life. Your over imbibement will get you before PCA, but in a cheerful manner , at least. Good luck

Welcome.
It could be a bad test.
if the PSA is confirmed, cancer could still be in the prostate bed and radiation might have a chance of treating.
worse case you still should live quite a while. And there are a lot of treatments you could use. Good luck.

I wouldn't be pulling a Phillip Seymour Hoffman quite yet. You're a long way from bone cancer and there are many options available and at this point may never be needed. Concern is normal, but don't count yourself out this soon. Hang in there!

Tom

Still confused.

Is your current reading .097, or is it .003, or is it .003 as in your last post?

None of them are bad.

If it's .003, I don't understand the need for any possible concern. That is about as close to a "zero" as you can possibly get.

Even if its .03, still nothing to worry about.

Only and if, you start having 3 consecutive readings above .10, should there be any remote serious concern.

So it will help if you clarify what your actual current reading is.

Even it were a true .10, still a long way from being a major concern, even .10 is such a microscopic amount of cancer being the case.

David

havanon,

.003 is less than .001 or .01 or .1 -- in fact your post op PSA < .01 which is GOOD! You'll note that many report their PSA < .1

PSA:

I THINK his PSA is .097 (the post is quite confusing), as per his title.

But .003 is NOT less than .001

Mel

My apology gentlemen, please. I caused confusion by giving my PSA in the subject line and then not repeating it in the body of my note. And thanks to all of you who caught that and tried to straighten it out for the others.

3-month post-op PSA: 0.097
-- Because the value at which docs consider PSA detectable, the 0.003 diff is surely within the margin of error so it might as well be a full blown 0.1!

Since the post-op pathologist reported the margins were clear, isn't it most possible that the PSA is coming from somewhere else in my body. Which I take to suggest very strongly that I have metastatic prostate cancer.

But as pointed out, there is no 'rational' reason to start hyperventilating and gobbling ativan until the PSA next month.

Thanks to all of you.

I thought it was going to be all over with the operation. I got through that ok so I suppose I can get through the other stuff.

I guess we all understand that once you've had cancer it will always be there, waiting. I feel better today. Yesterday knocked the breath out of me, but I understand that I'm going to have to get used to it. The PSA test. Could be a chocolate, could be a bomb.

The hormone therapy worries me the most. It sounds like it turns you into an inert muddled blob. I'm fairly sure I will decide to live a short vibrant life with a nasty ending than to live out a longer life as an unpleasant piece of furniture.

But who knows. I never really know what I'm going to do until I've done it.

Havon:

I can usually get results the next day, but this time they are doing a lot of tests, so I'm giving it another day. I go to the hospital records office and get the information

Mel

Havanon- Glad to read your feeling better concerning the post op PSA. It may take a few days but things will get back to normal. We both had surgery around the same time. I'm 10 yrs. younger with a better final pathology report but my 1st PSA was .49, 2nd was .47. I'm pretty upbeat...still a lot of life to live. As the song goes "don't worry, be happy". All the best to you.

Tarawa

Tarawa and Break, thanks! I've been preparing for the inevitable worst. You've put my reading into a more hopeful perspective.

I am glad I don't get the ultra sensitive test either. Just too much information. After my surgery I was <0.1 undetectable for 15 months. My latest PSA last month is simply 0.1. I double checked to see if the < less than symbol was left off by mistake, no mistake! Now I'll just have to check again in April to see if it is climbing.

Celebrate the undetectable Havanon! Our stats are very similar except I had 2 positive margins.

Bill from Florida