mycrooner said...
Thank you! My husband is 51 and we have 3 small children. 5 yr old twins and a 2 yr old. Dr said that he could tell us with most certainty bone scan is negative. He told us active surveillance is out of the picture. And to be honest depending n the results of the MRI surgery will probably be the way my husband goes but from now until MRI should i be making consult appts or are they going to want those results? and the whole biopsy slides thing ??? so much to take in. thank you
Hi,
Congratulations on having such a nice family. I'm sure your husband will be right there with you someday when they get married, have children, etc.
Yes, it does sound like there is a Gleason 7 involved. Gleason 7 is a moderately aggressive disease. The unofficial line of aggressivness kind of gets drawn after Gleason 7. In other words, Gleasons 8-9-10 are far more aggressive than Gleason 7. But, at the same time, a Gleason 7 usually still needs to be treated.
A bone scan and abdominal CT scan are standard tests that many uros order even for Gleason 6 patients -- just to establish a baseline. When my local uro (who DXd my Gleason 6 PC) ordered these tests, he assured me, in advance, that they WOULD be clear. He was right.
My surgeon at Mayo Clinic said he did not know why the uro even bothered with those scans.
You mentioned something about
radiation making urination problems "even worse?" Does this imply that he currently has urination problems (probably from BPH)? If so, his situation is similar to mine.
With me, the Mayo radiation oncologist I visited said EBR (external beam radiation) could cure me, but it could not solve my urination problems. So, in my case, surgery was the way to go in order to "kill both birds with one stone."
In any case, if he does have BPH, he should still learn all about
radiation and surgery so he can obtain firsthand knowledge directly from the appropriate specialists.
One last thought about
that covering doctor. I would be wary of ANY doctor who resists the idea of test results being double-checked/confirmed by a second lab.
Good luck!
Chuck
Resident of Highland, Indiana just outside of Chicago, IL.
July 2011 local PSA lab reading 6.41 (from 4.1 in 2009). Mayo Clinic PSA Sept. 2011 was 5.7.
Local urologist DRE revealed significant BPH, but no lumps.
PCa Dx Aug. 2011 at age of 61.
Biopsy revealed adenocarcinoma in 3 of 20 cores (one 5%, two 20%). T2C.
Gleason score 3+3=6.
CT of abdomen, bone scan both negative.
DaVinci prostatectomy 11/1/11 at Mayo Clinic (Rochester, MN), nerve sparing, age 62.
My surgeon was Dr. Matthew Tollefson, who I highly recommend.
Final pathology shows tumor confined to prostate.
5 lymph nodes, seminal vesicles, extraprostatic soft tissue all negative.
1.0 x 0.6 x 0.6 cm mass involving right posterior inferior,
right posterior apex & left mid posterior prostate.
Right posterior apex margin involved by tumor over a 0.2 cm length, doctor says this is insignificant.
Pathology showed Gleason 3 + 3, pT2c, N0, MX, R1
adenocarcinoma of the prostate.
Prostate 98.3 grams, tumor 2 grams. Prostate size 5.0 x 4.7 x 4.5 cm.
Abdominal drain removed the morning after surgery.
Catheter out in 7 days. No incontinence, occasional minor dripping.
Post-op exams 2/13/12, 9/10/12, 9/9/13 PSA <0.1. PSA tests now annual.
Firm erections now briefly happening in early mornings, 2 years post-op.
Post Edited (HighlanderCFH) : 2/28/2014 11:30:24 PM (GMT-7)