1st post-IMRT PSA = 2.1

If I'm reading your signature correctly your PSA has been up and down from the very start. Did your doctor have an explanation for that?

Hello ejc. I think your PSA reading is just fine. The PSA should definitely be cut in half by 6 months out and you are on track to do that and more. Re the nadir, it actually can take much longer than two years so don't get hung up on a timeline. Mine actually took about 6 years to nadir. You can also get a radiation bounce in there that can be troubling to some but generally isn't of too much concern.

Other than getting a good PSA test, how are you feeling? Everything ok re urinary and sexual functions?

Jim

What Tudpock/Jim wrote!

Thanks. During tx, I was a little fatigued and the full bladder prep was not always comfortable, but I really don't feel much different now than how I felt prior. No real changes. I wasn't exactly expecting that.

IMHO, doing a PSA check at 3 mos seems to be a waste of time for most post-radiation men, same holds true for post-surgery testing at 6 weeks. I know everyone wants to be pronounced “cured” as soon as possible and the doctors want to claim victory but the majority do not learn much from that first PSA as no test stands alone.

My wife had SBRT to a rib and the doctors started cancer marker testing right away (2 tests, much less helpful than PSA) so I had to talk her down after every set of results with significant fluctuations. My PCa experience kicked in and I told her the values are meaningless until enough time has passed to establish a more consistent and predictable trend which took over a year and is stable now within in normal limits.

I do not feel that the doctors explain the limitations of test results to patients and how to interpret the data prior to receiving results as you get them as soon as the doctor sees them nowadays. They typically do not do such a hot job when explaining them either and the patient is left to their own devices to figure out what they really mean.