Worried

Hello, I am new to this chat. My father who is 67 years old, had a biopsy yesterday. He has known about problems with his prostate for since last August. But opted not to tell us (4 daughters) up to this past Wednesday. The information he has told us that His PSA is 851. This past Sunday, my sister took him to the ER because he couldn't urinate. I need advice or support, anything at this point. His results from the biopsy won't be in for 15 days. My thoughts are only on what the doctor is going to tell us. Thank you in Advance……...

Welcome to HW, sorry you need to be here.

Sadly, the news isn't good. They often get the biopsy results sooner than they say. However with a PSA of 851, the likelihood is you're dealing with bad stuff.

Have they started him on any treatment? There are some good treatments out there that can bring him relief. The good news is that there is a lot the doctors can do to keep PC at bay for a very long time. At this point it would be mostly hormone therapy and other chemo treatments.

We have seen men here who've had higher PSA who gone and are still going many, many years after diagnosis. The treatments aren't fun, but they do work.

Hopeful the docs will get him started right away on something.

Hang in there and ask all the questions you want. We're here most days.
Andrew

rjmoll,
Glad to hear you'll be helping your dad. He's certainly got something going on--that's a very high PSA, and the blockage needs to be resolved. My suggestion to you if you want to add some value is to start learning more about the prostate and prostate cancer. A well informed patient will get the best care. Two recommendations are the "sticky" thread for "Newly Diagnosed" men at the top of the HW/PC main page, and here's a link to a site with other good general information to learn: http://www.prostrcision.com/qa/evaluating-your-cancer It's a couple pages long; read it all and you'll be on a good start to being well informed.

good luck
Norm

Yes Celia01, my thoughts exactly. The wait is torture. I will post updates as we journey this path alongside of my dad. I won't lose faith in what ever road this disease takes us.

Blessings!

As others have told you, that is a very high PSA. But the drug he is on should be helpful. Clearly, he went to ER for the urination difficulties...can I presume he has a regular urologist as part of this? And that doctor performed the biopsy? Where is he located? We may have some ideas on medical resources for him if he were to need them.

And to Andrew's point above, there are lot of tools that can help with treatment once you know things more definitively.

rj, yes, that is a worrysome PSA result. That being said, PSA is not a cancer test, per se. It is a test of prostate activity, and there are many things that can cause a PSA spike that are not cancer. If I could make a few suggestions to you...particularly if you're going to be involved in his consultations and conversations with his doctors:

Get a spiral notebook and take it to all meetings, and take notes. Frequently huge amounts of information are presented, and having good notes helps keep it all straight.

Also, get a big accordion type file folder to keep the paper in. And get copies of everything. We can help translate the 'doctor-ese' into useful language.

Last, this is not something to leave to the little guys. There are top notch medical centers all over, you owe it to him to get him to one of them. I don't know where Garland, TX is. That being said, if he does wind up with prostate cancer diagnosis, one of the best places to go is MD Anderson in Houston.

Best of luck as you start the journey. The important thing to know is that it IS treatable. He'll be around a long time yet.

Dear RJMOLL,

You've found a very supportive and informative network of folks right here. We're here to support you and your father.

We all understand the emotions that you are describing --- you and your sisters and your father are all reeling from this sudden news and unexpected turn of events. We've all been there, to some extent, in one form or another --- at first, you feel like you've been thrown on a merry-go-round or perhaps a roller coaster ride --- and you didn't even buy a ticket to the amusement park, right ?!!

So --- it's time to get your family members together to form a TEAM to support your father in all of this. He's going to need your guidance and support, every step of the way. From what you've posted, it sounds like a diagnosis of advanced prostate cancer. There are many of us right here that share in that same diagnosis along with your father --- I am one of those fellows myself !

To be honest, your father is going to need some top-notch doctors on his case. Assemble the best medical team that you can. You are waiting on more diagnostic testing results right now, but you need an expert medical oncologist, at the very least. Since you mentioned that you are from Texas, is it possible for you to get some expert medical advice and treatment from M.D. Anderson Medical Facility, located right there in Texas ? They have a renowned reputation across the country for top-notch medical care.

If you are seeking a top-notch medical team, you should seek a specialized UROLOGY ONCOLOGIST. There are thousands of urologists in this country, along with thousands of oncologists, but a UROLOGY ONCOLOGIST specializes in advanced prostate cancer cases like the one you are describing in regard to your father. We all deserve the best care we can find, so seek out an expert for your father who SPECIALIZES in prostate cancer.

We can continue to provide feedback and advice, as more information on your father's case is determined by further diagnostic testing. It's quite likely that additional imaging scans and diagnostic tests will be requested, to determine the full extent of your father's case --- whether there may be metastatic prostate cancer located in bones, lymph nodes, or other organs besides the prostate. Over time, I have been given an initial prostate biopsy, followed by MRI tests of the prostate, skeletal bone scans, pelvic scans, abdomen scans, PET scans, and bone density scans --- over the course of time since I was diagnosed. A battery of tests will likely be ordered in your father's case to pinpoint exactly where the cancer may be located in his body. This information will help your father's doctors determine a course of action --- a plan of attack --- a treatment strategy.

Getting a treatment strategy in place is helpful, because then you start to feel like you are combating the cancer. To be honest, you and your father will be entering a "battlefield" quite soon --- so, arm yourself with information and research --- and gather your courage, determination, and resilience as a family to help your father as he begins his treatments.

As more information in your father's case is learned, it is quite likely that your father will start a series of hormone shots. In prostate cancer, male testosterone "feeds" the prostate cancer, and the hormone shots will deplete the level of testosterone and help to "starve" a portion of the prostate cancer cells to death. The second line of attack that will likely be suggested will be a series of chemotherapy treatments to help attack other remaining cancer cells that are resistant to the hormone deprivation shots. There are a LARGE number of us here on this forum who have experience with the hormone shots and also chemotherapy treatments, including me.

There are also newer breakthrough medications that may also come into play in your father's course of treatments. Many of these new breakthrough medications have emerged within the past decade, and many of them have emerged in just the past five years. These new breakthroughs in the field of prostate cancer have already helped thousands of fellows, including me.

So --- further diagnostic assessment and testing will reveal a course of action for your father's case. Immediate treatments will likely follow, to start attacking your father's prostate cancer. As you learn more about his situation, you can continue to post updates here --- and our members here can continue to offer their advice and wisdom --- and to share their experiences with certain treatments and medications.

More than anything else, it's important to stay positive and focused on the future. Yes, you are entering a battlefield --- so gather your inner strength, courage, fortitude, and iron will. All of your family members need to get out their suits of battle armor --- polish your silver shields --- sharpen your swords --- mount your white horses --- and emerge onto the battlefield, with your new strategy of attack that you form with your father's doctors as your allies in this battle.

It's important to remember that your father will need your encouragement, love, and support above all else. Your family members and your father's friends become part of his support TEAM, along with his doctors. It's important to maintain HOPE and to realize that there are many success stories that have been shared right here over the course of years !

Encourage your father to maintain his usual activities --- hobbies, interests, and social life --- to the fullest extent possible. I realize he is dealing a sudden diagnosis, and is just starting some new treatments lately --- but staying connected with family, friends, and faith, in whatever form that may take for your father --- is very important.

Forge a tight, connected bond and relationship with your father's doctors and medical team. He will be meeting with them frequently for additional tests, diagnostic procedures, and treatment consultations. Communicate openly with your father's doctors --- form that bond --- give honest feedback --- write down important questions before each appointment. Great doctors become LIFELINES in all of this ...

Meanwhile, we are right here to encourage you, to support you, to lend a bit of advice, and provide a sense of solace. Continue to stay in touch with us --- keep posting --- keep us informed --- and let us know how your father is doing. We're all in this together !

Sent with my best to you and to your father, from across the miles,
Iowa State "Cyclone"

you are on a blog with all well meaning people and who, along with myself, have gone through the process.

while the numbers are worrisome, my gp said something to me before i had my biopsy that he has patients with psa 40 and higher and no cancer and has patient with a score of psa 4 who do have prosate cancer.

I had brachytherapy and my doc is happy with results, so far, showing up and if she is happy, so am I.

perhaps, with luck, it is something else.

good luck.

Okay So It's been a little while since I have updated. Here goes, I spoke to my Dad's urologist, Dr. Benaim. My dad recently had a bone scan and He said that it lit up like a christmas tree. My dads cancer and spread into the bone and he is on the last stage of prostate cancer, They are not treating with chemo but have started anti- hormone injections. He said there is no cure but this therapy will allow them to bring his levels down. So my sisters and I are trying to make sense of that the future holds.My dad is in good spirits.

thank you all for allowing me to vent on here………it helps

RJ

While that is a very high PSA, the HT can bring that down a lot and give him some relief. The HT will had side effects, but can be effective for a long time at keeping the PC at bay. This could be years, it's hard to say.

Wait till the next PSA test and see where he is.

Andrew