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Posted 1/26/2016 9:36 PM (GMT 0)
Does anyone know if BPH can also cause a firm side on the prostate? No rough parts or nodules felt.
Thank you...
Posted 1/27/2016 5:15 PM (GMT 0)

worriedtim said...
Does anyone know if BPH can also cause a firm side on the prostate? No rough parts or nodules felt.
Thank you...

I don't think so, but I'm no urologist. My GP felt nothing on my DRE, but sent me to the URO due to the PSA. The URO felt a slight firmness in a small area on one side, as did the guy he referred me to. This turned out to be an aggressive PCa, so stay on top of this. Do you have PSA results?
Posted 1/27/2016 5:46 PM (GMT 0)

worriedtim said...
Does anyone know if BPH can also cause a firm side on the prostate? No rough parts or nodules felt.
Thank you...


Yes.

BPH firmness is more symmetric, smooth and not as hard, whereas PC tumor firmness is harder ("stoney") and more asymmetric or nodular.

Are you having BPH symptoms (obstruction or irritation)? Peeing problems typically accompany BPH; it would be rare to suspect BPH from a DRE in a patient who is not experiencing symptoms.

In either case, follow-up is necessary/appropriate.
Posted 1/27/2016 7:14 PM (GMT 0)
My psa was 5.4 2 weeks ago. The urine issue comes and goes. I have another psa scheduled for Friday and if the uro sees it still elevate he wants to biopsy and ultrasound. Is this normal? He said if he felt that it was something tat was very urgent he would have started right away. Just confused and worried. There are treatments for this right?
Posted 1/27/2016 7:24 PM (GMT 0)
Tim .... all your questions have been answered in the other 3 threads that you have started on this.

As everyone told you in the other threads, it's a 99.9% chance you have a prostate infection, not any cancer. As Allen suggested to you in another of your threads, instead of lurking around here and worrying, maybe you should also be looking at getting help for you anxiety issues. Not self-diagnosis, and not asking strangers on an internet message board, but a live medical professional to help you.

While we can sympathize with you, at this point the redundancy is distracting from helping others. Please, take a deep breath, have the PSA test this Friday, and if not already, ask your uro for some antibiotics.
Posted 1/27/2016 7:31 PM (GMT 0)
Yes,,, I understand about the anxiety. When I went to the uro yest he said he didn't believe it was an infection. The prostate was more firm on one side but he also said that it could be due to BPH..... I'm sorry for bothering,,,, I just couldn't find an answer online about the firmness.... 😕
Posted 1/27/2016 8:25 PM (GMT 0)

worriedtim said...
Yes,,, I understand about the anxiety. When I went to the uro yest he said he didn't believe it was an infection. The prostate was more firm on one side but he also said that it could be due to BPH..... I'm sorry for bothering,,,, I just couldn't find an answer online about the firmness.... 😕

You will know- or your Uro will- after the repeat PSA - if you need that Bx or not. Anything about the firmness is just going to be someone's(one of us or even your doc's)best guess, and subject to individual practitioners opinion, and the accuracy will probably depend on their experience. You might need a round of antibiotics to see if next PSA goes down (mine went up!), possibly indicating prostatitis rather than PC. So I would not stress myself trying to find out if a certain type of firmness indicates BPH more so than PC, that info is a drop in the bucket compared to PSA leading to biopsy. The biopsy is the only way you will ever know if you have it, and even that can miss and give a false negative, though not a false positive. In the meantime, first step is the next PSA. If it actually goes down, especially after antibiotics, then you probably won't want to bother with a Bx but just keep a close watch on it. If it goes up, then you probably better Bx. Unchanged, I'll just leave that one to your doc! smilewinkgrin
Posted 1/27/2016 9:28 PM (GMT 0)
Tim,

It is perfectly fine for you to come back and tell us what your urologist said when you saw him yesterday. When you kept asking the same questions over and over while you were waiting to see him we all knew that you were anxious and we all understood -- we've all been there -- but now you have new data to report.

Unfortunately, that data remains somewhat ambiguous. "A little firm on one side" is one of the things that a urologist says when he doesn't want to commit one way or the other. It's not an "abnormal" DRE result and it's not a "normal" DRE. A normal prostate is small, soft, and symmetrical. An enlarged prostate ought to still be symmetrical but because it's larger it's more difficult for doctors to be sure they could feel any lumps or bumps. If it feels different on one side than the other then that is worrisome but can easily be explained by an infection.

All of which means that the DRE and your PSA didn't answer all your doctor's questions and more information will be needed to figure out what is going on with you.

Keep us posted.
Posted 1/27/2016 9:53 PM (GMT 0)
Thank you for your input. I just feel alone and needed to ask someone. I just want to know there are things that can be done to handle the outcome of the tests. I admit I am suffering from anxiety. I am seeing a dr tomorrow for some meds. I just need to know there are options out there. I'm very sorry if the questions are annoying.
Tim
Posted 1/27/2016 10:23 PM (GMT 0)
I don't know if this will help you, but it helped me so I am passing it along...

Try not to worry until you know what exactly what it is you need to worrying about. I have gone through 3 cancer "scares" in my life and at first I frantically searched the internet and found all kinds of info, some made me feel better, some scared the sh!+ out of me. I would get all worked up and worried. It turned out that after all the freaking out, what I ended up having to worry about (if there was anything to worry about at all), was nothing that I had worked myself up about. I worried about all kinds of conditions and outcomes, none of which came to pass. So I learned to back away from the computer, quit consulting Dr. Google incessantly, and go get the tests done that you need. THEN AND ONLY THEN, you can worry about exactly what you know for sure you are facing.

Right now you have "a little firmness", that can be caused by a few different things, and even if it is PCa, it is most likely eminently treatable, and you are going to live a long life and probably die someday of something other than PCa. So, even though this might be easier said than done, try not to worry about anything except being on time for your next tests. Then when you get those results, you can worry about whatever YOU KNOW you have to worry about.
Posted 1/27/2016 10:28 PM (GMT 0)
Thank you man. I appreciate you taking the time to respond. I am very appreciative. I'm sorry you have gone through the things that you have. I'm thankful there are people to turn to.
Very much appreciated.
Tim
Posted 1/27/2016 11:54 PM (GMT 0)

worriedtim said...
Thank you man. I appreciate you taking the time to respond. I am very appreciative. I'm sorry you have gone through the things that you have. I'm thankful there are people to turn to.
Very much appreciated.
Tim

You are very welcome!

But don't feel sorry for me! I am doing great. 10 years cancer free from the bladder cancer, colon cancer "scare" turned out to be benign, and you can see my PCa history below. But to roll it all up into one little ball... I did a whole lot of worrying for nothing. Well, maybe not nothing, but the amount of worry i put myself through, was way out of proportion to what I actually ended up having to deal with. yeah yeah yeah
Posted 1/28/2016 1:37 AM (GMT 0)
I'm so happy for you. 10 years is fantastic. I pray you continued health.
Tim
Posted 1/28/2016 7:05 PM (GMT 0)
GeetarMan, did you have treatment, or are you AS for 10 years now?
Posted 1/28/2016 7:13 PM (GMT 0)
The 10 years is for bladder cancer, not the PCa. I am on AS for the PCa for 2 years now.
Posted 1/28/2016 8:28 PM (GMT 0)
Oh.. Well I'm glad you're doing great. Thanks again.
Posted 1/28/2016 8:38 PM (GMT 0)
I've had over 100 DREs by as many as 10 different doctors. some said it was hard on one or the other side most said it was unremarkable. It's totally subjective and not worth worrying about. Feeling a nodule is a totally different thing and should be taken very seriously.
Posted 1/28/2016 9:45 PM (GMT 0)
John T, thank you for your response. It is nerve wracking to say the least. I have another psa done tomorrow then possible biopsy next week. Psa was 5.4.... The uro said it could even be BPH. I pray for peace.
Tim
Posted 1/29/2016 2:46 AM (GMT 0)
Yes.

I had a "firm" right side of prostate discovered on DRE. No "nodule" irregularity, just
an unusual firmness that was inconsistent with BPH. BPH produces a larger feeling
prostate, but it should still be uniform in shape and have a soft feel.

Follow-up biopsy confirmed Gleason 3+3 prostate cancer.
Posted 1/29/2016 4:20 AM (GMT 0)
Hey, HeyMikey.

I've started a thread for you so folks can say hello. It is here:

Welcome New Member HeyMikey

Welcome to the forum.
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