Still in the zero-point-one club

Not the zero club, since I had radiation, not surgery, but maybe 0.1 is getting close to the IMRT equivalent.

My uro says my next test in four months may go to .2, .3, .4 or something like that, as my T level begins to recover (starting about now) from a yearlong suppression by Lupron. When that happens, the rise won't bother me, as I will be expecting it.

Best wishes to all my list brothers for good December test results!

That's a great number!

My doc warned me that it bounces around a bit after the RT.

All the best,
Andrew

Way to go, that's a great report.

david

Captain, sir:

I genuinely appreciate your kind thoughts and words of support. Ever since I have been a member here on the list, you have always been very supportive and helpful to me, and I truly thank you for that.

You're right, it's really rough to face the holidays knowing your wife won't be there to share them with you. Marilyn was one of those people who just loved to decorate the house for Christmas. Doing that was one of the traditions she grew up with in her own family, and I was very happy to follow her lead and make it a tradition in ours! She would do the inside, and I would do the outside, that was the way we divided it up! It was always such a joy to view the result! It was always, in many ways, the best time of year for us and our two boys growing up.

Christmas last year was my first one without her, and it was very, very hard to deal with. This holiday season is so far maybe a little bit better, because at least I have one year behind me of how to deal with the holidays alone, as difficult as that is.

Fortunately, my two sons are living with me right now (not sure how long that will last, although the three of us get along great) and that has been a h-u-g-e help this holiday season in a lot of ways. But even with the two of them here, there is still that silent emptiness in the house, even after more than a year, that just never seems to go away.

Although it has been over a year since she has been gone, I do so still miss her terribly, as she was truly the love of my life.

And may I now say, so very earnestly, to all of my brothers and sisters here on the list, who may be reading this now, TREASURE YOUR SPOUSE! Keep loving, helping, standing by that wonderful person, in sickness and in health! Yes, "in sickness and in health," as we are doing now here on the list for our loved ones.

Because you never know, you never know ...

But to end on a brighter note, Captain, if you were the CO and I was the XO of a company, I've got a feeling we'd be the best doggone company in the whole doggone battalion! Rating of Outstanding at every inspection!

All the way, sir!

I guess it's not too early to start wishing you, Bill, and any other of our brothers and sisters who may be reading this now a wonderful and most joyous holiday season. May 2013 be a great year for all of us!

What a great list this is!

houseboy -

The quick answer is that with surgery, the entire prostate is removed, so that since the prostate is the source of PSA, then if it isn't there any more, there shouldn't be any PSA being produced, and therefore, a PSA of undetectable, or close to zero, should occur.

With radiation as the primary treatment, that means the prostate is still there, even though it has been substantially irradiated, but since it's still there it is capable of producing PSA at a level lower than before, but one that is able to be picked up on the test.

Obviously it gets more complicated than that, with prostate tissue sometimes remaining in the prostate bed following surgery, and generating a PSA level over time. And the PSA level following radiation can "bounce around" a bit following treatment, which makes judging whether the PSA reading is from benign activity or not much more difficult.

In short, presence of a non-zero PSA level following prostatectomy is concerning, since it could indicate a PSA reading coming from PC cells that got left in the body, and a bouncing series of PSA readings following radiation can make things confusing for a while, as to whether those reading are just "bounces," or coming from PC cells that are still there.

Hope this helps.

81GyGuy

Thats a good number!

So sorry to learn about your wife. Sounds like you and Marilyn shared a very happy life together.

Marilyn is looking down on her boys , her husband and son, with pride and love.

Definitely Treasure Your Spouse! We have been married 39 years and have a wondrous geeky style of love, to this day we still flirt with each other, hold hands and kiss - frequently.

Hugs!

Bud

We will beat this crap