Extremely high PSA

My husband’s PSA came back at 1420 twice at the same lab. He had a biopsy done yesterday and we are waiting for results. He is starting hormone therapy. The doctors are stating he has cancer even before the testing is done based upon the PSA. We honestly are reeling from the news and I want to educate myself so that we understand the situation and possible treatment options. Any recommendations on where to start my educational journey would be appreciated.

My husband is 68 and we live in the Sacramento area. We are very concerned by the extremely high numbers. He is set for a bone scan soon and a first meeting with the oncologist. I want to be prepared for the oncologist appointment with questions I need to ask. We should have biopsy results in a week.

Hello, Lollie ~

Welcome to a caring and supportive place ~ for you AND your husband!

We're all here to support each other, provide insight, and to share first-hand experiences.

I was diagnosed quite unexpectedly, in my 40s. I'm a school teacher, and a new school year had just begun.

An initial PSA showed an unusually high PSA for someone my age ~ over 100.

Quite alarmed ~ hoping it was simply an infection ~ subsequent retests showed my PSA climbing even higher. These were worrisome days!

A biopsy confirmed full-blown prostate cancer, and ADT hormone shots began immediately, the very day I was diagnosed.

That gave me some feeling of relief, knowing SOMETHING had been done, to start attacking the cancer.

From there, there was a whirlwind of additional tests & scans ~ including a bone scan. I felt like I had jumped on a merry-go-round.

My scans found that my case indicated that my prostate cancer had already crept into both my lungs.

The scans showed pockets of cancerous spots, peppered throughout both my lungs. There were more spots than I could have counted. That was a tough day.

I had racing thoughts, worrisome fears, and sleepless nights. This is probably where you are at currently.

I knew I needed to go onto the battlefield and fight, with everything I had within me.

I was given the chance to embark upon a new treatment practice ~ upfront chemotherapy infusions.

This, plus the ongoing ADT shots (first LUPRON, later FIRMAGON, and now ZOLADEX) gave me newfound H-O-P-E.

My PSA was monitored often. My PSA began to decline, and even tumble.

After a few months, a new scan showed both my lungs were peppered with blemishes, indicating scars. The nodules had shriveled up, due to the ADT shots.

My doctor explained the worrisome nodules had "starved and strangled and shriveled" ~ due to the ADT shots.

I gave THANKS that day for lung SCARS, because scars meant the cancerous lung nodules had shriveled up! Who knew I would be thankful for lung blemishes and scars!

Since then, I started on a newer breakthrough medication known as ZYTIGA (Abiteraterone Acetate). It has continued helping me and others here for years. Others here are taking XTANDI.

Later, a series of radiation treatments were added to my treatment plan. I had traveled to Mayo Clinic by then and met with Dr. Kwon. He added radiation treatments to my treatment plan, and those treatments continue to pay dividends.

I just celebrated my birthday this weekend. It's been 10 years since I was first diagnosed, and I continue to remain active and I continue teaching at my school full-time.

There's even newer treatments that have been added since I was first diagnosed in 2013. PLUVICTO (Lutetium-177) is a newly approved treatment, for example.

I give thanks for these new treatments ~ mindful of those facing a new diagnosis.

Family, friends, and faith have been an integral part of my journey ~ and the wisdom and compassion of my doctors have been a GODSEND, every step of the way.

When I first discovered this website, I really needed to read first-hand stories that brought me a newfound sense of H-O-P-E.

I hope something within my story brings that to you today ...

You'll find a caring network of support, fellowship, and camaraderie here!

Handshake, encouragement, support ~

CYCLONE ~ # Iowa State University

lollie, welcome to HW, as we always say, sorry you need to be here.

You can use StephenS post as a good framework for formulating your questions.

Suggestion: use the search function and search the forum for posts by Todd1963. He is pretty much the forum poster boy for “advanced prostate cancer is manageable”. He was diagnosed, I think, 12 or 13 years ago, with a PSA of 3200 and widespread Metastasis. Today his PSA is minimal to undetectable and he is living life to the fullest.

Hi Lillie,
A bet you are really freaked out. I know I was when mine came back over 3200. For me, it felt like all the weight of the world grabbed onto my stomach and tried to pull it out my bottom. Man, that is such a crappy feeling, but there is some good news! For me, that was 17 years ago. There are many men, I can name 100 of them off the top of my head, who have faced this scary news, and they faced it many years ago. There is no reason why your husband cannot be one of those men . Relax, breathe, put together the best care team you can possibly find! It's not the end of the world. Things are definitely going to change. You and your husband may reach out to me via the email in my profile. There is nothing special about me. I didn't receive any cutting edge treatments , well actually I did but they were cutting edge 12 years ago so now they're just standard of care. I may have taken some stuff that's not on anybody's radar but I'm not sure if it helped. It didn't hurt so I guess there is that. Science is getting a lot better treating this disease , but prostate cancer is not what you or your husband should be focused on it's scary but it should not be your focus. Your focus should be on love and family and friendship and doing things that bring you joy because none of us knows how long we're going to live. It is possible you could get hit by a bus tomorrow. Focus on life. Focus on living and let prostate cancer become a footnote. You guys got this. Stay positive. Todd.

You guys got this.