high psa and exercise

If any of those exercises could naturally put any stress on the prostate, it certainly could temporarily elevate the PSA. If this was anything akin to riding on a bicycle, etc., it sounds probable. Otherwise, if these are just regular exercises without such an effect, it probably would not make any difference.

Hmmmm, I guess that wasn't exactly a definitive answer, eh? LOL

Chuck

Resident of Highland, Indiana just outside of Chicago, IL.
July 2011 local PSA lab reading 6.41 (from 4.1 in 2009). Mayo Clinic PSA Sept. 2011 was 5.7.
Local urologist DRE revealed significant BPH, but no lumps.
PCa Dx Aug. 2011 at age of 61.
Biopsy revealed adenocarcinoma in 3 of 20 cores (one 5%, two 20%). T2C.
Gleason score 3+3=6.
CT of abdomen, bone scan both negative.
DaVinci prostatectomy 11/1/11 at Mayo Clinic (Rochester, MN), nerve sparing, age 62.
My surgeon was Dr. Matthew Tollefson, who I highly recommend.
Final pathology shows tumor confined to prostate.
5 lymph nodes, seminal vesicles, extraprostatic soft tissue all negative.
1.0 x 0.6 x 0.6 cm mass involving right posterior inferior,
right posterior apex & left mid posterior prostate.
Right posterior apex margin involved by tumor over a 0.2 cm length, doctor says this is insignificant.
Prostate 98.3 grams, tumor 2 grams. Prostate size 5.0 x 4.7 x 4.5 cm.
Catheter out in 7 days. No incontinence, occasional minor dripping.
Post-op exams 2/13/12, 9/10/12, PSA <0.1.
Semi-firm erections now happening 14 months post-op & slowly getting a bit stronger.

Most uros I know believe that cycling and sex should be avoided for the 48 hours before a PSA test.

 

It sort of depends why you are doing a PSA test. All of those things make a small difference in the reading but in many cases that difference doesn't change anything. If you are just screening -- rounding up a bunch of men and giving them PSA tests -- then the categories of results are so broad that the difference won't change your thinking about any of them. Even if you have some sort of cut-off (say you follow up anything 4.0 and above and a DRE moves a man from 3.9 to 4.1 so he gets followed up) it is arguable that the 4.0 cut-off was arbitrary and there is very little damage done by following up a man with a PSA of 3.9 even though it is, technically, under the threshold.

But broad PSA screening is controversial these days. Some argue it leads to needless anxiety and overtreatment. For the less-controversial uses of the PSA test those small differences can be important. For monitoring men suspected of having PC or for surveillance of men who are watching low-risk disease the small changes in PSA can be important.

So if your PSA test was part of an annual physical I wouldn't worry too much about the minor affect that the gym may have caused.

Sorry John, I usually try to read back through a guys last few posts before I pitch in but I obviously forgot this time. You are one of the guys with more biopsies than me. I remember reading your thread.

I still think that some people here worry too much about what they do before they have their blood drawn for a PSA test. There are things that affect the values a little but there are so many of them that you have to either wrap yourself in cotton batting for a week before the test or just go ahead with your life and figure that things will average out. I do think that blood should be drawn for a PSA before the DRE and that you should either avoid sex for 48 hours before, or tell your doctor so he can take it into consideration (I mean, emergencies do happen, sometimes... if you're lucky.)

As for the MRI it's sort of the 'new' normal in your situation. Your PSA and free PSA scores continue to suggest that there might be something going on but biopsies just aren't finding it. That's why your seventh biopsy was a saturation biopsy. Sometimes those will find something that no number of regular biopsies will find. And sometimes a MRI will show things that a saturation biopsy might miss.