Has any had experience with Dr. Bertrand Guillonneau? NYC

No, but in  my opinion you can't go wrong dealing with Memorial Sloan Kettering.  They have a supremely wonderful reputation.  I don't know if Peter Scardino is still there. His book on PC is not the only book to read, but a must read for anyone with Prostate Cancer diagnosis. 

Best to you!

From what I understand, Memorial recruited Guillonneau from France where he specialized in the lapyroscopic (not robotic) procedure. Seems he is the speicalist at Memorial for the lap. procedure. Scardino and Eastham are the Memorial specialists who perform the open procedure.

Hi!! JJK S J C is Correct about All 3 of the surgeon at Sloan Kettering Scardino I would have to wait another month or 2 and Eastham works with him and is my Surgeon. Guilloneau I believe does the Laproscopic Surgery. Dr. Eastham does the open RP and the Lap but has 20 Years with the open Surgery and 5 or 6 with the Lap. So I chose the open. With his Blessing Of Course. Shepla

Gang Shepa, Lee and Buddy,

Thanks for the the kind thoughts, I will let you know what the doc recommends with my Gleason 6 and PSA 3.7. This forum has been big help.
JJK

well..just noticed no posts this thread for about two years, so I guess as a newbie I messed up in choice of threads..sorry. thx.

The thing I like best about this thread is that I feel secure in the knowledge that I am talking to myself, and thus carrying on a brilliant conversation.

 

There are several areas where I could post this, but those searching will hopefully find this useful.

 

  Morbidly obese people such as myself are not candidates for prostate surgery. Those physicians who specialize in folks like me often have to abort the robotic orlaproscopic procedures and go for the old open methods, or scrub the whole deal and just fight to save the patient's life....So....the alternatives to "watchful waiting" are a bit convoluted.

 

   Without bariatric surgery my chances of prostate surgery were zero. I am three years away from Medicare.

 

    Jan 23 I had the lap band, but my NM insurance company noting there is no bariatric surgeon in the entire state, said they only way they would pay part of the estimated $15,000 procedure was if I drove 9.5 hours to El Paso, to a clinic across the street from Cuidad Juarez, Mexico.  I went, pre-surgery my weight hit 333 pounds. My wife and I spent 11 days at our own expense in a motel in El Paso, and this morning I weighed in at 272.4

 

   Also this morning Dr. Guillonneau agreed to set a surgery date for Oct 19 at MSKCC in New York. When I was diagnosed there was no DaVinci in New Mexico. There has been one here for a few months, so I expect my insurance company will try to get me to switch from NYC to NM. I won't/

 

Oh, did I mention the one day in the El Paso hospital with no complications was $46,000.

 

No one at MSKCC can tell me the cost of surgery or what my rather lousy insurance will cover. I need to be there for tests a week early. After two days in the hospital, I need to return for travel clearance and post-op stuff eight days later.

 

ARgue about national health care all you want. I have been working and saving since age 14, two college degrees, and basically the bariatric and prostate surgeries will wipe out all family savings and probably force a house sale into a bad market. But many Dr's have also told me I have the best surgeon at the best cancer facility in the world, where they would go themselves or send their family members.

 

Dr G is not a big believer in hormones but I have been on them for 11 mnths and my PSAs are virtual zero. The Casodex is taken, 50mg daily, and the quarterly shots (?Zolodex) are $1,900 each--again, insurance pays about a third. None of the posts mention that the doctors can call it anything they want....I read the literature and basically it is chemical castration. Post surgery Dr G hopes that can be reversed, we'll see.

 

Healing Well has been a text book and great morale booster for me. I don't post much and devised my own strategies to survive....such as traveling to my office in Panama for routine blood tests, pathology, MRIs, Catscans, dental work, colonoscopy etc to forget about stateside deductibles and use the Johns Hopkins facility down there for quality care at 1/3 the cost. No, they have no robotics down there.....

 

Hopefully I will post again with good results and when I stop watchng Oprah, listening to the Jonas brothers, awaking with hot flashes, and crying at the drop of a hat.

 

ms

 

James

thanks for the positive note...

  There are several excellent USA and UK trained prostate surgeons in Panama, and I visited with one of them who probably spent 45 minutes with me discussing options, gave me almost a complete physical and charged $50.

   The dr who did my colonoscopy about 2 years ago is on the board of directors of the new Johns Hopkins hospital and he chatted with me, as did an internist who does lots of followup work for both of them post surgery.

   First, all three of these men said if they had a DX of prostate cancer they would go to MSKCC. Of a total of nine I asked in Panama and the USA, eight said MSKCC, and one said perhaps MD Anderson but "if I had the travel time, probably New York, Sloan Kettering or Mt Sinai."

    I could have had the open surgery in Panama for about $5,000 plus some extras, but the surgeon was a bit concerned about my obesity and other risk factors. ALL doctors suggested that because of sleep apnea, obeisity, high blood pressure, no diabetes yet, but certainly down the wrong track, that the least invasive and shortest surgery was recommended. My Taos urologist, Panama board and Tufts and MSKCC trained, from day one felt although there was no DaVinci in New Mexico (they finally got one a few months ago) or in Panama, I should "shop around and make yourself an expert" and report back to him.

    about a week later, computer printouts in hand, I told him I would like to try to get an appointmetn with Dr. G and MSKCC but also liked Mt. Sinai, Cleveland Clinic, and a few others.  he smiled and said he was biased in favor of MSKCC but indeed hoped I would reach the same conclusion.  Now with sleep apnea just about abated, tryglycerides ande cholesterol normal, and 50% of my blood pressure drugs reduced, I feel positive of my decision.

   An important final observation  and I hope readers here who gave me the idea will spread the word and even call this guy.

   I read that Dr. Randy Fagin in Austin specialized in obese prostate surgery. I did not want to wait and I certainly have not felt good about the 13 months of girlie hormones. So I called him last year and sent him an email. I forgot about it.

    Enroute to my grandson in Tucson, along I-10 in southern New Mexico at 4pm on a Sunday afternoon Dr Fagin called my cell phone. He chatted for 20 minutes.

    He explained that even with his expertise he has to "abort" some procedures, revert to open surgery, and in some cases halt the operation. Obese patients are a risk all the way down the line, but he would see me if I  insisted. He asked who I had checked with, and by then I had already had my first appt with Dr. G in NYC.

  Dr Fagin laughed and said something like, "Well, it is important to get second or third opions and be proactive and do your research.,

But wow! You got into see Dr. Guillonneau? Let's just say you are already playing for the New York Yankees!  No need to try out for the Pittsburgh Pirates or Chicago Cubs!"

   As we say in the old days in Brooklyn Dr. Fagin is a "mensch"

thanks for all the encouragement.

mark

Dr. G. did mine in Aug '08 and I have nothing but praise for him and MSK.

You mentioned DaVinci. I didn't know he did robotics. When I used him he only did Laproscopic without robotics.

I was very satisfied with him. I hope things get increasingly better for you.

I had my laparoscopic radical prostatectomy was performed by Dr. Guillonneau on Oct. 14, 2009. The surgery went well and I am continuing to recover at home.

Having discussed the surgical options for my surgery, and my preference for the robotic laparoscopic surgery, with Dr. Guillonneau, he informed me that he hasn't performed robotic surgery for about 2 years - that he feels that in most instances/cases there isn't a significant advantage to robotic versus non-robotic laparoscopic surgery.

I was released from the hospital two days after surgery, and with the exception of the normal post-surgical symptoms (abdominal pain from surgical gasses, muscle soreness in the legs, etc.) my progress has been very good.

In addition to the wonderful things I have to say about Dr. Guillonneau, I just wanted to also make mention of Dr. Heidi Rayala. Serving as Dr. G's "Fellow", she was not only a great source of information, but one of very few people you come across in the medical profession that still has a heart for people. She was patient, extremely knowledgeble and concerned not only for my well being, but also for that of my wife and our 3 sons.

Post Edited (Chris Palazini) : 11/1/2009 10:58:42 AM (GMT-7)

Good report Chris..

Dr. G and his nurse Ana and staff are terrific.
I am 10 weeks post surgery...one small pad a day, a minor wound healing problem but no infection, and went back to work 2 weeks after surgery including two cross continental flights in two weeks.

Slight leakeage when sudden and strenuous bending or lifting but I would say back to 85% of normal activities. Started driving again 3 weeks after surgery....despite fighting with insurance company for "out of network" payments, glad I selected MSKCC early on.
good luck!
==

AGE 62 ANGEL FIRE, NM
DX 7/08
EMAIL: [email protected] pls put “Healing Well” in subject
psa HAD GONE FROM 1.7 TO 4.3 IN THREE YEARS...DIGITAL AND ULTRA SOUND EXAM SHOWED NO ENLARGEMENT.
BIOPSY SHOWED 2 OF 12 CORES POSITIVE.
TWO TUMORS SHOWED GLEASON 4+3 AND 3+4
NO INDICATION OF ESCAPE FROM CAPSULE OR METASTASIS
STARTED CONSULTATIONS AT SLOAN KETTERING 8/09
DR GUILLONNEAU SAID NO SURGERY UNLESS MASSIVE WEIGHT LOSS.
AT DX 333 LBS, SLEEP APNEA, AND HIGH BP
BARIATRIC SURGERY RECOMMENDED.
LAP BAND SURGERY IN EL PASO, TX 1/23/09
10/1/09 276 LBS, TRIGLYC AND CHOL NORMAL, NO SIGNS OF SLEEP APNEA, ONE BP RX REMOVED AND OTHERS CUT DOSAGE IN HALF;

STARTED QUARTERLY ZOLODEX BY TAOS,NM UROLOGIST, WHO TRAINED AT MSKCC, INJECTIONS AND CASODEX 50MG DAILY 9/08

Laproscopic done 10/19/09 Dr. Bertrand Guillonneau
NYC Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
Jackson pratt drain removed surgery plus 1 day.
Catheter out 9th day
One heavy duty pad first day without catheter.

PATH REPORT 10/29/09 MSKCC DR VICTOR REUTER
GLEASONS CAN NOT BE DETERMINED, HORMONES DRIED PROSTATE
NO SIGN OF ANY CANCER ESCAPING PROSTATE, OR AT MARGIN
NO SIGN OF ANY CANCER IN ONE LYMPH NODE REMOVED

PROGNOSIS EXCELLENT. PSA IN ONE MONTH
THEN SIX MONTHS
THEN ONCE A YEAR OR MORE
ONE VISIT PER YEAR FOR LIFE

Six weeks after surgery one light pad per day,
Often it stays dry the whole day.
Continuing wound problem, oozing *****
Substance. Primary care and Urologist
Have irrigated and say there is no infection just
“granulated fat cells dying and coming to the
surface from small surgery wound under navel, common
for obese patients. Must bathe, disinfect, and dress wound
twice daily. “It can take 6 months for this to heal” says the
docs. After 6-8 hours pinkish brown puss appears on gauze.
Yup, probably more info than yo need to know….otherwise
Feeling strong and active.

Thanks James.

My PSA levels remain at <0.05 some four months after my surgery.

I was supposed to begin radiation treatments this month, but with the numbers remaining low, Dr. Guillonneau felt that we could hold off for a few months and see where my PSA levels go.

I feel a bit odd about not tackling this all now, but I am comfortable with Dr. G's recommendation and I am happy to not have to be concerned with the added side effects of the radiation while still kind of in recovery mode.

Mark, thanks for updating us on your life. I remember your struggle to find a surgeon who would work on you, and really pleased to see that the results are so good. Keep in touch, we always like to have successfully treated guys hanging around, if for no other reason than as a example of what most people expereince.