PSA 700

My assumption is that since my father is feeling fine the Dr wants to go with this option that has a smaller chance to work while we still have more sure options ahead. The Dr was adamant that if my father starts feeling pain we will jump to ZYTIGA immediately, my concern is my father won’t identify the pain as cancer and it could progress to a point that it gets harder to control.

I’ve read that Provenge has a better chance to work if introduced before second line treatments, but I’m not sure the validity of that. My assumption is that he didn’t like the clinical trial because that would be progressing through 2 options in 1 step, but that’s just an assumption by me.

I appreciate your thoughts and feedback that’s what we are working through. I’ll try to get a note to the doctor to get us feed back on the scans since they’ve had the week to look at them.

My PSA at the moment is 3600. It has been as high as 3800..My cancer is still confined to my bones. I have no bone pain or any other pain..I have had 11 or 12 different treatments and therapies in my long 12 year journey fighting this monster.. I see your Dad is 63. that means there might be insurance issues you should be aware of so you don't get blind-sided..

Lupron is chemical castration so it's side-effects are well known..The reason it's used is because it's the most effective treatment at the beginning...As needed, other drugs can be added to reinforce its effectiveness..

Please let us know if there are any issues we can help you with..

Austex, thanks for checking back in with us. I'll let some of the more knowledgeable folks chime in on the various drugs you're asking about. I think it's OK to be concerned--but try not to project too far down the road--the docs at MDA are some of the best in the world--and they will do their best to find the answer that works for him.

Hang in there....with him starting where he did--he's already come a long way.

One of the problems right now is that the Dr. at MDA has very little tact or bedside manner. This is something I've been willing to look past because it's MDA and the Dr. is very well respected; however, my father is wearing thin and becoming unwilling to look past anymore. I'm afraid this is going to cloud judgement regarding the recommendations we receive tomorrow.

The appointment tomorrow will tell us a lot more, I was just wanting to glean some information from everyone here to try and form some of the questions or expectations.

As always, thank you

The Dr at MDA wants to have a wait and see approach. Since my father started ZYTIGA only a month ago he says to give it another month and see how the scans looks. According to Dr. 15% of patients can have a rising PSA, even though the are responding well to ZYTIGA. Dr. also said that the current scans do look worse, but that can be indicative of ZYTIGA working and actually healing the spots in the bone, but when we scan again in the next couple of months it should be more clear the results of the medication.

I expressed concerns with this and asked about more treatment options, but Dr. explained we have already gone through two of the best treatments in only 1.5 years (Lupron, Chemo) and he doesn't want to use up all options too quickly which I can also understand. My father is still "feeling great" working out every day and has great energy so I think that's one of the reasons the Dr. is optimistic about delaying other treatments, but time will tell.

Definitely fearful on our side that there seems to be a decent chance his cancer will be completely unresponsive to ZYTIGA which felt like a sure thing and at this point hard to say that PROVENGE had a meaningful impact.

We are grateful he is feeling good and praying that his rising PSA isn't indicative of a worsening problem.

Just wanted to pass the update along in case it can be helpful for anyone else's journey as well.

Have a great week Gentlemen,

Tex

Hi folks - I was thinking back through the last couple years and remembered this site. I thought it with an update, though a sad one. Our father passed away in February of this year, a little over two years after his first diagnosis. It was a rough ride--another round of chemo, some experimental stuff at MD Anderson, which was a nightmare of a place--but eventually he developed a faster-growing form of cancer and went on hospice. We had a really nice final weekend with him (he loved sports, and got to watch the Super Bowl with his grandkids) and he passed in his sleep.

Thank you all, and especially Cyclone, for your help along the way. One of the hardest parts to me was battling the firehose of medical jargon, and you folks were a real help at some critical points along the way. May you all find courage and comfort in your own journeys. - M

Thanks for making the effort to let us know. It's important for us to know about our comrades.