Not even biopsy yet, but freaking out!

Tony,
I'm sorry to hear you may be headed for a biopsy. But I'll toss in my 2 cents with others and say a biopsy is worse in your imagination that it is when you actually have the procedure. I didn't feel any pain -- it was more like if someone snaps a finger against your skin -- a quick instant of pressure but not actual pain.

It is something none of us would chose to do if we could avoid it, but it really isn't all that bad compared to other things we all go through at one time or another --way less annoying than most dental work, smashed thumbs etc. I type this as the finger that connected with a basketball the wrong way when I was 17 is dislocating and hurting now that I'm 69. Unlike this ancient and nearly forgotten wound, I promise you're biopsy will be just a bad memory a few days after it is over.

Hi Tony,
Sorry you have to be here but you have come to a great place to have support and to gain knowledge from people that have already been through everything you are facing. Please include your wife in this forum (if you and she are comfortable w/ that). There are several wives (myself included) that are here that support one another and learn/research for our husbands so that we can be the best support for them that we can be. I am the fearful type too and get really stressed out over any kind of testing or procedures. I wish I could tell you how to get rid of the anxiety but I can't, but I can tell you just coming here and talking to all the great people here really helps. It lets you know you aren't the only one and that you aren't alone. My husband was put to sleep for his biopsy but he had no problems afterwards. He had to take antibiotics before and after. The blood in the semen lasted about 6 weeks and turned all sorts of color. With any procedure there are risks, just like there are risks w/a colonoscopy but the benefits outweigh the risk so that proper diagnosis and treatment can be determined. This is NOT a death sentence!!!! Keep telling yourself. Worst case scenario you have to make a treatment decision. When Bob was first diagnosed he broke down and cried (he never cries) and for several days went through all the "What if I die, what will happen...." I must admit I did the same. DON'T DO THAT! I came here, gained knowledge, asked questions here and to his doctors and learned that kind of thinking is useless and not true. Hope something I said helped. Wishing you good luck on your journey!~Miki~

Tony,

Like PSA says - freak out now and get it behind you. (So to speak! )

It kind of sounds like, from your DRE, that a biopsy is in your future. However, the biopsy is not so bad. I had 14 pokes of which 5 came back positive. The total appointment took about 20 minutes. They had me give a DNA sample and then sign/initial a bunch of stuff in the test kit. Then the assistant took look around with an ultrasound probe that the doctor uses that to map out where he was going to take the biopsy samples. The doctor took about 10 minutes (at the most) for the actual pokes. I just counted to 14 and it was over. The noise of the biopsy equipment was more of a shock than the actual punctures.

The nurse then came in, gave me a couple of shots of antibiotic (one each side) and that was all there was to it. The guy that assisted the doctor was cool and understood what I was going through and his assistance was fantastic.

I then just went home and relaxed for a while and then took the wife out to lunch.

This forum is a great place to get information and some ears to listen to you. There seems to someone out here that has gone through just about everything PCa can toss at you. Remember that prostate cancer is rarely a death sentence. Find out what is going on, figure out what is BEST FOR YOU, get that treatment and then you can get on with living your life. Taking that first step is the hardest.

DonC
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Age 62 - @ DX 61
DRE: enlarged w/"ridge"
Pre-Op PSA: 6.8
Biop: 5 of 14 positive,(12%(3+3),11%(3+3),20%(4+3),5%(3+3),4%(3+3)
da Vinci: 10/17/2014 Both Nerves Spared
Cath: 17 days
Post-Op Path:
Histologic Type: Adenocarcinoma
77gr - 4.5cm x 4.7cm X 4.2cm - 10-20% Involved by tumor
Largest module 1.6cm Bilateral Lobes
TNM Staging: pT2c pN0 cM0
EPE: Absent SMI: Absent
Margins: uninvolved, Lymph Nodes all benign
Bladder Neck Negative for Carcinoma
Gleason Grade: 3+3=6 (down from a 4+3=7 in biopsy)
Perineural Invasion - present, Vascular Invasion - present
PSAs (Roche ECLIA Meth.):
12/26/14 - <0.1 (Early test)