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Building an At-Home and Away Team for Medical Support

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Prostate Cancer
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Posted 10/15/2014 4:28 PM (GMT 0)
I noticed that a lot of folks here have received treatment at an out-of-town facility.  I am in a similar situation where I wasn't crazy about the local urologist to whom I was referred by my GP, and ended up getting linked up with a urologist oncologist who I like several states away.  Over the past several months, I've travelled up to DC/MD (from SC) to get all my tests done, and will likely get my treatment up there as well.

My question - how deep a bench of "local" support would you recommend having in place locally?  In other words, aside from a GP, would it be sufficient to pick just a urologist?  Another urologist oncologist?  If radiation is used, another radiation specialist?

For big picture stuff, follow-ups, etc., I'm planning on using the same medical team up in MD; just trying to set my self up for any immediate/low-level issues that either can't wait or can just as easily be handled locally.

Thanks in advance for any advice!

Posted 10/16/2014 1:06 AM (GMT 0)
There are free places you may be able to stay as well as help with transportation too. Check out American Cancer Society they have a bunch of resources
Posted 10/16/2014 8:19 AM (GMT 0)
Fred,

The more up-market private establishments in Australia have a TEAM of UROs, Radio and Medical Oncologists, Clinical Psychologists, ED and Oncology Nurses.

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Posted 10/16/2014 1:36 PM (GMT 0)
I may have set sort of record with the size of my medical team.

I have the local urologist who recommended the biopsy. I have the second opinion urologist/surgeon who recommended the bone scan and CT Scan that primary thought was not necessary with such a low PSA.

I have a local radiaiton oncologist.

I was admitted into UNiv of FL Metastatic Disease program where my primary contact is a medical oncologist and director of admissions is a radiaiton oncologist.

Sincwe I have kids in San Jose and Chicago areas, I saw two renowned radiation oncologists while spoiling grandkids in their area, Dr. Mack Roach at UCSF and Dr. Brian Moran at Chicago Prostate Center.

Based on feedback from other G9's I started givign my G9 the attention it deserves and looked for cocktail approaches.

So I added a second medical oncologist Dr. Jeffrey Turner in Marina del Rey CA an associate of Dr Mark Sholtz and Dr. Richard Lam with all 3 collaborating on eac of their individual case load.

For advanced scans I see Dr Fabio Almeida at AZ Molecualr Imaging in Phoenix who corrected the mis-diagnosis by the rural imaging firm in Florida that I live nearby.

Because I have been on Lupron since 3-28-13, I include my cardiologist in my treatment planning as more likely to die with PCa fromheart attack than die from Prostate Cancer.

Thanks to mentoring from Tall Allen My radiation oncologist is Dr. Chris King at UCLA who specializes in high dose 5 fraction SBRT obly done by him, by a team of doctors in Ztoronto and by Dr Allen Katz n NY.

Thank God for Medicare and the collective wisdom of this board and my team of doctors.

Some disagree with this but I see no reason to travel out of area to get 4-month Lupron shot or 6 month Prolia (formerly monthly Xgeva when I was misdiagnosed stage 4 with bony mets) so have those shots locally wth copy to other doctors on the team.

Thanks to Dr. Fabio I was downgraded to stage 3 locally advanced potentially curable with radiation but as G9 always possible to have recurrence.

Lupron Jim
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