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Which one of these would you suggest please....??

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Posted 7/3/2017 10:47 PM (GMT 0)
My Husband has had a 3T MRI. Shows left lobe ? tumour with what they call one "tentacle" looking for somewhere to go. Still mostly inside the prostate. One Urologist wants to do IV sedation and a template overlay over the 3TMRI...The second opinion (MUSC = Bad version of MGH here in Charleston SC) wants to do local anesthetic and take 12 samples. He is saying hubby is stage 5 but I can't find a stage 5....? Hubby's PSA is 8.1 and been rising since April. Second opinion wants to see if he's "Too far gone for radical Prostatectomy"...yes, the Ivy school guy was a real charmer!!! I don't like the conscious sedation as it may be unnecessary ...Husband watched no iv anything when they did his Colonoscopy...but don't want him in so much pain under local that he will fear a surgery if necessary...I am trying to understand which biopsy would be better...I might add we are heading to Atlanta for Mistletoe (Iscador) therapy which will boost his immune system, slow down and might halt the cancer...Also taking Propolis...has anyone heard about the Essential Living OIls protocol of Lemongrass and Frankinscence??
Thanks
Sue
Posted 7/3/2017 10:57 PM (GMT 0)
Save your money, mistletoe is not going to cure cancer. Same for those other bullcrap snake oils that you're considering. Sorry to be so harsh, but you have to wake up and smell the coffee. Get a biopsy and get the cancer confirmed (or not) and determine your treatment based on the Gleason score and number of positive cores from the biopsy. Everything else is just nonsense to keep your hopes up and the pockets of frauds lined.

Your husband has not stage 5 cancer, you probably heard PI-RADS 5 (a very highly suspicious target on the MRI).

Post Edited (searchinginla) : 7/3/2017 5:01:35 PM (GMT-6)

Posted 7/3/2017 11:12 PM (GMT 0)
Agree with the above, if he's got cancer, then he's got cancer, and none of that stuff is gonna stop it. It's just not that easy, no matter how much we want it to be.

Get the MRI targeted biopsy, don't worry about the sedation, I wish I had sedation for my biopsy. And I'm sure if your husband really wants no sedation, he can just tell the urologist and he will use local anesthetic. Unless he's doing a saturation biopsy, in which case he needs to be sedated.

There is no stage 5 . I'm sure you misheard, or mis9nterpreted, as Searchinginla stated. If in fact a urologist told you it's stage 5, run the other way

Post Edited (Pratoman) : 7/4/2017 8:36:27 AM (GMT-6)

Posted 7/4/2017 12:54 AM (GMT 0)
An MRI can not confirm prostate cancer...Only a biopsy can..Either type of biopsy will get the job done, be sure you have insurance pre-approval for the MRI guided one..Save your money on the snake-oil and Mistletoe it just doesn't work except for the people who are selling it..How old is your husband?
Posted 7/4/2017 1:41 AM (GMT 0)
He's 70...and hopes to live to be 85...
Posted 7/4/2017 5:05 AM (GMT 0)
Very few surgeons will do a Prostatectomy on a 70 year old man, it's just too risky..There are exceptions of course for guys in exceptionally good shape....But first you need to find out whether or not he has prostate cancer and if so, how aggressive it is (Gleason score). One step at a time....
Posted 7/4/2017 11:03 AM (GMT 0)
Good morning psichedout.

As so many have written before me - sorry you find the need to join us but happy you found us. Would add I'm a bit sorry about the tone of some responses to your genuine inquiry - hope we can be more polite to newcomers.

The advice I would offer is to find an excellent urologist to work with. Perhaps others can help with recommendations in your Charleston, SC area. Most urologists will be charming in person - they all must recruit patients. That isn't much to go on. You want someone with current training (that doesn't mean young) who is a skilled learner, dedicated to his/her art and craft who is also a pleasure to work with. Other medical professionals - nurses who work the OR, MDs in related fields - can offer informed suggestions.

Best to you - many of us found this early adjustment_to_new_normal phase challenging.

Wilderness.
Posted 7/4/2017 1:02 PM (GMT 0)
What those guys said. Get the biopsy done and go from there.
Posted 7/4/2017 2:07 PM (GMT 0)
Hi psichedout,
Sorry you have to be here but this is the best place to be for PC information. All of us here have cancer and have been making the same decisions you are going through.
You will be able to ask questions and listen to stories of men that have been through very similar conditions as you. You can find information here and knowledge and with that it gives you the power to make choices you are comfortable with.
I like your name -- that is the way I felt when I first heard the cancer word from my urologist.
Check back often this site is open 24/7.
Larry



Always record your doctors visits, you cant take notes fast enough.
My wife took notes the first year but now we always record when we are in the doctors office.
Posted 7/4/2017 3:29 PM (GMT 0)
Yes, what all the above said. Especially don't trust snake oil.

But one bit of advice, every time he gets some medical work done, especially imaging, always ask for a copy, both paper and CD. That way you can show it to other MDs and they know exactly what was said to you.

As to sedation for a TRUS biopsy, I was given a Xanax and that was good enough, it's over in 40 seconds. Had to sleep for three hours in the parking lot before I could drive.

Good luck,

Nick
Posted 7/4/2017 4:53 PM (GMT 0)
I had two biopsies before the tumor was finally identified, and both were under anesthesia. They use Propofol, which is over with in a half hour. You wake up and don't even know anything happened, but are still groggy for a bit so can't drive yourself for 24 hours. As mentioned, the MRI cannot confirm cancer but only locate the tumor so that a biopsy can be done more accurately and without totally missing the tumor, which was the case with my first.

As nice as it would be if we could just take some herbs and rub some oils and the cancer would be gone, it just isn't that easy. This is a very complex disease that always seems to be a step ahead of medical science. You will read about and hear about many natural remedies that proclaim miraculous recoveries. Look into Steve Jobs. He had tons of money but most importantly wasted valuable TIME pursuing holistic healing that did him no good. The most any such healer will give you is a false sense of security. Do not waste your time or more importantly risk your husband's health.
Posted 7/4/2017 8:55 PM (GMT 0)
Psichedout
You've received some tough advice. We all wish there was a magic cure for this lousy disease. There is none unless you're lucky to have low risk PCa. Most guys are. All you can do now is find out if he has cancer and if it's curable. PCa is ranked by Gleason score which is made up of two numbers which can't exceed 10. The first number is the most frequently seen type and the second is the next most frequently seen type. A five is the most aggressive type . Maybe that's what you were told. There is no stage 5. A biopsy is a sample of cores extracted from the prostate. Usually 12 are taken but depending on the size of the prostate at least six or more than 12 could be taken. These cores are put on slides and analyzed. Once you know what you're dealing with you have a decision to make about treatments which are indicated, if any. We all hope to live to the mid 80's . I sure do. But I'm now taking one day at a time. You can't hope and wish when it comes to this disease. Homeopathy doesn't work. Diet helps but is not a cure. All you can do is act based on tried and true therapies and hope you've done all you can to live as long and as well as possible.
Good luck.
Bob
Posted 7/5/2017 3:27 AM (GMT 0)
If the MRI showed a PIRADS 5 lesion, then he needs a fusion biopsy ASAP to determine, as best as possible, what his actual prostate cancer stage is ... If in fact, he has prostate cancer.

Everything else is speculation. If he has cancer., there will be time for more expert opinions and learning what the options are.

One word of warning ... do not let the diagnosing urologist push him into surgery without additional consultations with a radiologist and an oncologist. Good luck.
Posted 7/5/2017 7:15 PM (GMT 0)
I can't add much to the advice you've received. The biopsy is the next step. Nobody mentioned it but there is an alternative to IV sedation for the biopsy. The better alternative is the periprostatic nerve block. This is a medication given via very tiny injections directly into the prostate before the actual biopsy samples are taken. I had my biopsy done with the nerve block, and there was virtually NO pain. Yes, I felt the two tiny injections, but truly these were not painful. A few minutes later and the entire area where the samples will be taken is completely numb. I felt fine after - took my wife out to lunch, then went back to work for the afternoon. Ask for the nerve block. My opinion was that if my urologist did not have this available, I was going to find another urologist who did.
Posted 7/5/2017 8:23 PM (GMT 0)
I guess I'm wondering what all the fuss is about . I just had a local anesthetic, heard six clicks like a staple gun and felt nothing thereafter.
Bob
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