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any guys live alone and fight prostate cancer? and Lupron shot? side effects.

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Posted 2/23/2013 12:51 PM (GMT 0)
and also have other problems like diarrhea, heart disease, sugar diabetes , my stent makes the heart pump better, but it is enlarged. and my diabetes is controlled, I heard it even goes up with ADT as does the BP. There is a care system set up in Arkansas. so I can plug into that. But how about a motel in Houston? My kids live in Calif, so I could have some help there. But I hate to burden family with me while I fight cancer, although I am sure they would help me in any way possible and love doing it.
I have good neighbors here in Arkansas. They will drive me to and fro a treatment where I get put out, like the biopsy was. In Loma Linda I have a room available for $250 a month with TV and DSL Internet connection. and right down the street from the proton facility. Boy I don't know how am I supposed topick a treatment? this is the hardest project I've ever had. They say pick by least side effects as all are effective for buying time a retiree 70 needs. For a 50 - 60 guy it would even be harder. To me surgery is the best if qualified, but all the docs except the surgon say radiation of some sort. The surgen says he can get it out! and he has only done 50 laproscopic! scary indeed.
Posted 2/23/2013 3:04 PM (GMT 0)
Not to speak badly of the surgeon, but 50 surgeries is on the low side. I like his optimism, but you only get to do this once. Have you talked with a more experienced surgeon? Not to say that I think surgery is a good or bad option, but you need to feel more secure with how you feel about it.

As to dealing with this alone, that would be me. I have fewer collateral health issues than you, but had exactly the same concerns about RT as the primary treatment. My decision was forced by the insurance company, so all the logistics issues fell by the side of the road, as I was going to a clinic maybe 20 miles away. Having looked you up on the map, I know that even if you settled for nearest, it would be more of a challenge.

Posted 2/23/2013 9:14 PM (GMT 0)
You do need to talk to another surgeon. I understand you not wanting to be a burden to your family but there are some great surgeons in California and some great cancer treatment centers. A short visit to do a consult might be worth the effort. If you did choose surgery in CA, I'd bet you'd only need to stay for 2-4 weeks before you'd be recovered enough to fly home. Just something to consider.

How to pick a treatment is tough and I'll have to say it was the hardest part of the PC journey for me. Once I got past that everything else was easy. Wish I had a magic formula to give that says, at this number do this.

In your place, I think I'd pick the treatment where you have the best support - people to take you to appointments and stuff like that.

Hang in there.
Andrew
Posted 2/23/2013 9:59 PM (GMT 0)
here is what loma linda says for a 9 gleason
20 proton and 25 treatment s of 3 D conformal radiation
Now MD Anderson say 3 months of ADT then strictly protons 8 weeks,
It would be my option to treat the lympf system with IMRT but serious side effects because of proximity to the colon. The partain tables nix surgery for a 9 with a psa 10.
but some things one would try are a guess, everybody responds differently.
Posted 2/24/2013 3:35 AM (GMT 0)
I'm curious, since M.D.Anderson uses a multidisciplinary approach, what did the urology oncologist state about surgery?

My husband was put on ADT as his only option initially. The urology oncologist would only do surgery once hormone therapy reduced the tumor load and then he was going to remove my husband's bladder (tumor on bladder) and prostate since his tumor was outside the capsule.

He did end up getting great results from hormone therapy and his options opened. He wanted to keep his bladder and he knew that surgery would not allow that and chances of any type of cure from surgery were slim.

He chose IMRT with continued HT and his lymph nodes (several were positive) were also radiated. He hasn't had any problems with his bladder or bowels 8 months post IMRT.

Best of wishes in your treatment choice.
Posted 2/24/2013 1:14 PM (GMT 0)
MDA said surgery as a curative approach had a weak probability of success. So I would be looking at surgery plus ADT plus radiation. The partain tables are used a lot and for a psa of 10 and a gleason of 9 there is a 43% probability it has escaped. The doc realizes the CT scans, bone scans and MRI show nothing and that is a good sign. The ADT nowadays seems to be the choice to start for both MDA and Loma LInda and Chicago prostate Center. The ADT weakens and shrinks the cancer. There is a big debate for how long? usually till it quits working and psa goes up. But MDA says 2 years. with 3 month shots. seems there are a million guys worldwide on Lupron. some the side effects are not bad, some it is tough. Bottom line no doc will make choice for you. He gives ya options. Pick your poison!!! you mentioned nothing about his gleason score/psa side effects?
Posted 2/25/2013 3:20 AM (GMT 0)
Berdoo,

My apologies. Usually, whether I want it to or not, my husband's stats print with my post.
They should print out below this post.

His worst side effect came after IMRT. He has extreme fatigue.

But, keep in mind he was on HT, then had chemo 6 months later, then IMRT 6 weeks after the chemo and is now on Zytiga also.

His blood work levels are still as out of whack as they were after chemo, so we're thinking it's just taking time for his body to recover. Really not sure which caused the fatigue, because after chemo he would have one really down day but was continuing to work. Maybe it's the Zytiga, Lupron, Casodex combination.

He gladly accepts the fatigue for the results he has thus far achieved.
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