new member 36 years old

Just want to say hello to everyone here.I really love the fact that everyone here is so positive.I have read thru a lot of posts and continue to be surprised at the great information and encouragement given.With that being said,here's my scenario.

about a month ago I came home feeling very fatigued.Not tired,but fatigued(like someone had pulled my power cord).This continued on for a couple of days.A good friend of mine had said he was having the same issue and it ended up that his testosterone was low.So I head down to my local low T center.They take my blood and run a testosterone and psa test.Well,sure enough my testosterone was low(185),but my psa came back at 2.5.The rep there says that he has to send my blood to labcore so they can run a more thorough test.He calls me back the next day and says that it still came back a little high(2.1) and I need to see a urologist first.So I go see a urologist,he gives me prostate exam and runs another psa test.He said that my prostate does not feel enlarged and he didn't feel any anything on it,as well.A couple of days later he calls and said my psa reults came back in.They came back at 1.6.He tells me that he had spoken to number of his colleagues and they were pretty much divided.Some were saying it would be a waste to biopsy and to wait at least another 3 months to run another psa.The other half were saying to do the biopsy just in case.The dr tells me ultimately it's my decision,but if it were him he would do the biopsy.So that's what I decided to do.So last Friday I had the biopsy done.I was put under when this was done.So now I am playing the waiting game and it sucks.My follow up appt is this Wednesday.So we shall see.A little background.I am 36 years old.They is no history of cancer on either sides of my family and I am hispanic.I know when it comes to cancer nobody is exempt,but I try take some sort of comfort in knowing that some of these facts might work towards my favor.I will keep everyone informed on what the results were.Thank you for taking the time to read my situation.

 

With your age and psa numbers the odds are well in your favor. If cancer is found, yours would truly be an exception. Psa above 1 when tested at 40 does increase the risk of having PC sometime in the future.

Thanks.I have been trying to remain positive and keep busy,but it is easier said than done once the big "C" is mentioned.Of course,I have been researching a bunch of websites and reading stories(before I found this one).I know I shouldn't because naturally I begin to let my mind wander and get the best of me.What if the results come back negative,but I have something else?Or this person said he had these symptoms before he was diagnosed with a different form of cancer,what if I have that?I have some of the same symptoms as this guy maybe I have that instead!?!Sheesh..one can go crazy without ever having any facts.So like A YOOPER said,I am going to just try to put this in the background and let ya'll know how everything goes come Wednesday.Thanks again.

At your age I really doubt you have PCa.

Did they not run you through a course of antibiotics before doing the biopsy?

We have very similar numbers and age. But my PSA was sligtly higher than yours and I do have a family history of PCa.

There are exceptions, of course, and I was one, but it's unlikely you have PCa. Frankly with a PSA trending down towards 1.0 I might have waited for the biopsy until further PSA tests. My urologists did tell me he was uncomfortable with anything over 1.0 at our age, though.

A friend of mine in the medical field told me he's walk barefoot to the Vatican if it tuned out I had it. I did, but I have that family history issue which makes a huge difference between us.

When are you getting the result?

You'll have a baseline with the PSA, true and in my opinion very valuable once this proves to be nothing.

Not sure you have a baseline with biopsy since a biopsy isn't an exact or definitive science and even for those with positive cores a good urologist can miss them. Some of the more technically inclined people like John T can clarify this point perhaps.

I'm sure your urologist had his reasons, but often times, as was the case with me, they run a course of antibiotics on slightly elevated PSAs prior to performing a biopsy so they can rule out an infection causing the elevated PSA. In my case, in an attempt to avoid the biopsy (which turned out to be nothing), I did two rounds of antibiotics and 3 PSA tests.

If I knew how easy the biopsy was and how enjoyable the drugs were, I probably would have just done it after 2nd PSA. But that' for our age. A biopsy on a man my dad's age can have more potential side effects.

hmmm..Now ya'll have me wondering.I'm not really sure why this course wasn't taken.Having never been in a situation such as this,I wasn't really sure what to ask.Besides the obvious scary questions.I wish I had found this site sooner.

Yep. Like NolaVette said, biopsies give two kinds of result: positive and inconclusive. If they find something then you know it's there. But there can be quite a bit of cancer there and a biopsy will just happen to miss it.

Keep after that PSA but don't make yourself crazy over it. You are a young guy and not likely to have prostate cancer. If your biopsy is clear think of your occasional PSA tests as an excess of caution -- something to be done but not thought about, much less worried about.

7779:

I too am surprised that antibiotics weren't recommended. I had bad, bad prostatitis at your age but I don't recall my psa ever being above .4 back then. It makes you feel like you have the flu, plus I had to pee like a race horse uncontrollably and urgently!

Hope that's all you have! Good luck.

Bob

____________________________

DOB 1/3/1944

1981: prostatitis

2000-2013 BPH, low T treated with avodart, tamsulosin, androgel

PSA History:

Pre 2000     0.4

01-08         0.6

3/09:          0.6

11/2011      2.2

 8/2012       2.7

 2/2103       5.5

 4/2013       6.1

 5/2013       6.6

 11/1 2013   0.1

 6/2013 Bx:PCa Gleason 4+5= 9, 2/6 cores, 10%, 40%  DRE neg. (Stage T1c)

 9/7/13 open nerves  sparing RRP, Johns Hopkins, Ted Schaeffer MD PhD.

 9/9/2013  Pathology: SVI, EPE and pos. margin at base (Gl7),N0M0, (Stage T3b)

 9/20 2013 Foley and staples removed;

currently: one pad per day, ED

Watchful waiting until next PSA in 3 months

 

I too am surprised there wasn't a course of anti-biotic. When Michael had his first PSA it was 18, they gave him antibiotics and it dropped, not much but a few points. Due to Michael being diagnosed at 39 without any family history, I don't want to give false hope that it won't be cancer, but I would say try to not waste too much time worrying about the results you will get on Wednesday and deal with it as the information is given to you. I know that is much harder done than said.

An infection by any other name is an infection, an infection of the prostate will cause psa rise . if your asking if your lymph nodes in your neck, a little tender, would cause psa rise I would say no, as an infection of wound would not.
also prostatitus can be pernicious enough to where antibiotics have no effect. personally i would not have gotten the biopsy, but it matters not, its not that horrendous experience. I am very confident you do not have PCA. A 1.6 psa is high for your age, but it could be simply "you". It could be a stubborn case of prostatitus. It could be excessive sexual anal play. And least likely of all PCA. All of these are my thoughts and are not based on anything, but a ltd knowledge of facts about prostate problems. Depend on a knowledgable and integrity based urologist, before any thing gleaned on this or any web site.

The general rule regarding PSA tests is that you should do nothing to stress the prostate during the 72 hours before the blood draw.

This includes, of course, sex, along with bike riding, strenuous exercise, digital rectal exams, etc.

Another thing is to try and have the same lab analyze the blood each time because different labs use different techniques -- and this can result in fairly wide differences in readings, even from the very same blood sample.

Good luck!
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.
Pathology showed Gleason 3 + 3, pT2c, N0, MX, R1
adenocarcinoma of the prostate.
Prostate 98.3 grams, tumor 2 grams. Prostate size 5.0 x 4.7 x 4.5 cm.
Abdominal drain removed the morning after surgery.
Catheter out in 7 days. No incontinence, occasional minor dripping.
Post-op exams 2/13/12, 9/10/12, 9/9/13 PSA <0.1. PSA tests now annual.
Semi-firm erections now happening 14 months post-op & VERY slowly getting a bit stronger.