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90-day PSA Not Good

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Posted 1/22/2010 1:06 AM (GMT 0)
Got my 90 day post surgery PSA today, .15.  The 30-day PSA was .07.  Not a good sign.  My urologist already had me do the initial consult with the radiology oncologist (rad onc) after the first test because I had 2 positive margins.  The rad onc  wanted to see the 90-day and recommended immediate IMRT if it went up.  I see the urologist tomorrow and the rad onc on February 2.  I guess I will join the IMRT club.  I don't see any choice now.  I still have mild incontinence and have not even begun to work on the ED.  I guess the important thing is to kill the cancer.  To make the day even worse, just found out I am going to have a $1600 repair bill for my truck.  Some days are definately worse than others!!!!!  Hopefully things can only get better.
Posted 1/22/2010 1:10 AM (GMT 0)
SubicSquid, So sorry about the PSA and the Truck. I hope that you RT will go as well as Sonnys. I sincerely hope that tomorrow will be better for you.

Jeff T
Cajun Country
Posted 1/22/2010 1:15 AM (GMT 0)
hey subicsquid, sorry to here of your psa increase. so its off to radiation. wishing you the best outcome with that. keep us posted. we are in this thing together. neil
Posted 1/22/2010 1:30 AM (GMT 0)
SubicSquid,

Sorry to hear that, but you are not alone. My 3 month was great but the 6 month and 6 1/2 month put me in the IMRT club. Your gleason was downgraded to a 7 so that is a positive as are the MRI and bone scan. Hopefully it is localized and the radiation will finish the job. keep us posted and you will see about four of us posting updates who are currently taking IMRT.

Michael

Posted 1/22/2010 1:57 AM (GMT 0)
Supra, you seem to be joining whats getting to be a long list of failed surgeries, myself included. Not sure what to make of that info, part of it is we are only seeing a tiny speck of the men that are dx with PC and getting treatments. I would wait till you have the 3rd proven increase before committing to doing the radiation.

David in SC
Posted 1/22/2010 3:31 AM (GMT 0)
Thanks for the support. I too have been wondering about all the surgeries that end up turning into radiation. I know the surgeons can't be expected to get microscopic cells that are outside the margin such as mine. When I brought up having second thoughts about my surgery after the post-surgery pathology report, my urologist basically said you can't look back and second guess your decision. Almost everyone seems to make the surgery choice right away because they "want that nasty cancer out of the body". This is why I never considered radiation. But after a complicated open surgery and the nasty side effects (incontinece and ED) I have to wonder if radiation might have been a better first choice. Drives me crazy. I guess that is why the doctor says not to look back. Of course, if the cancer had been contained in the prostate and my PSA was now zero, I would be saying "that surgery was sure the best choice". This disease really sucks.
Posted 1/22/2010 6:26 AM (GMT 0)
Squid,

I was particularly pained to read of your circumstances in your first posting. Let me simply say I'm sorry for how things have unfolded, but know that follow-radiation is most often very effective in cleaning up the remaining cancer.

I was also struck by the dicotomy of responses, which you loosely alude to in your second posting, which follows the follow-up PSA tests. It's either "Whopee, drinks for everyone!" or "Oh crap". It turns out to be "Oh crap" for, as I understand the statistics, about 30% of surgery patients.

Certainly no fault of yours, but unfortunately you aren't done fighting this b*tch yet. I wish you well.
Posted 1/22/2010 12:07 PM (GMT 0)
Squid, not the results you and we were wishing for, but onward you go. Keep up your spirits and we're always here when you need us.
Posted 1/22/2010 1:54 PM (GMT 0)
Squid, given the inherent baseline instability that labs have close to their detection limit (and for PSA that's typically 0.1, I believe), I'd recommend a re-test before making such an important decision. The 90-day result is only a little above that at 0.15, and I question the accuracy (i.e., could the "true result" actually be between 0.05 and 0.2?).

You really haven't established a "trend" in my opinion because the 30-day test used different analytical methodology. It isn't a huge deal to have a little more blood drawn and analyzed, especially when you consider the side-effects of the radiation. Just another thought.
Posted 1/22/2010 4:31 PM (GMT 0)
Squid,
Sorry about your elevated PSA. I sure hope that your IMRT will go well a kill what ever PC cells are lurking around. Good luck.
Posted 1/22/2010 10:10 PM (GMT 0)
 

SubicSquid,

Sorry to hear you may be joining the IMRT Club but with two positive margins you have a very good chance your cancer is local and they can get it with radiation.  However, I think I would get another PSA in a month or so since 0.15 is still low, mine was 0.5 before I started treatment.  You are only out 3 months and need time to heal and get the incontinence under control if possible before starting radiation.

Jerry1

Posted 1/23/2010 12:11 AM (GMT 0)
Squid, as a newbie here, I'll add my encouragement along with the others. Hope you can try to keep your spirits up. One day at a time. One of my children is a cancer survivor and there were days it was "20 minutes at a time." Some days are like that. Stay in the joy. That is my motto for this year, challenging as it can be.
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