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Posted 1/29/2020 1:08 AM (GMT 0)
Hi all, I am Dave, a 63 year-old man who had an RP in 2018 and the cancer has reared its ugly head again so I am now on chemo for metastatic prostate cancer. So far at least, I still feel good and am doing my best to live life to the fullest.
Posted 1/29/2020 1:11 AM (GMT 0)
I am sorry to read that your struggle continues. Please keep us informed about your situation. We will try to support you as best as we can.
Posted 1/29/2020 1:13 AM (GMT 0)
Welcome and good luck, Dave!

Djin
Posted 1/29/2020 1:16 AM (GMT 0)
Thanks for your kind words. My initial PSA was 10.1 in January 2018. Biopsy revealed a Gleason 8. Had RP in April of 2018. I was good to go until later that year , I had salvage radiation. Again, I was good to go until about October of 2019 when PSA began climbing. I am on Firmagon and no idea how long that will be.
Posted 1/29/2020 1:20 AM (GMT 0)
Hi, Dave44130, welcome! You'll find a lot of information here, and a lot of support. This is a very friendly forum!
Posted 1/29/2020 1:22 AM (GMT 0)

Dave44130 said...
Thanks for your kind words. My initial PSA was 10.1 in January 2018. Biopsy revealed a Gleason 8. Had RP in April of 2018. I was good to go until later that year , I had salvage radiation. Again, I was good to go until about October of 2019 when PSA began climbing. I am on Firmagon and no idea how long that will be.

I assume your G8 was a 4+4. Were there any adverse findings in your post-op path report?

Djin

Post Edited (DjinTonic) : 1/28/2020 6:32:34 PM (GMT-7)

Posted 1/29/2020 1:25 AM (GMT 0)
I can't remember already . The jargon confuses me but I guess there was a positive margin, ( some left behind) . I was in shock for a long time after surgery then a deep post-op depression also. I feel pretty good and have decided to live life to the fullest for however long I have.
Posted 1/29/2020 1:30 AM (GMT 0)
Welcome, Dave. When you get a chance, please create a signature with basic information about your PCa history. Go to My Profile > Edit Profile. Have a look at the signatures of veteran posters as examples. It helps make recommendations whenever you post.
Best wishes to you.
Posted 1/29/2020 2:09 AM (GMT 0)
Saipan makes a good suggestion about a signature. I'll add only that there is a limit to the length of it, and it's relatively small. Enough for a good summary, but not a detailed history.
Posted 1/29/2020 2:41 AM (GMT 0)
Dave - Sorry to hear that your prostate cancer is misbehaving. I think you will find some folks here that have been where you are and still winning the fight, some for a really long time as treatments advance.

Not sure I read your intro correctly but you indicated you were on chemo then mentioned Firmagon which is hormonal therapy which makes sense. I know it is hard to keep things straight as you have had a lot happen in a short time period but you will get a lot questions here trying to fully understand what you have gone through. Preparing a concise signature or your history will help also as suggested.

Have you been going to the Cleveland Clinic for any of your treatment? You probably want to be seeing the top prostate oncologists that keep abreast of the latest treatments and trials available for your PCa situation. Many of us are one rising PSA from where you are at so you have a lot of brothers in the fight here pulling for you.
Posted 1/29/2020 3:10 AM (GMT 0)
DAVE, not much to add, sounds like you’ve got it under control, and sounds like you’ve got a great attitude.
Just want to say welcome to a great group of guys, and some spouses as well.
Posted 1/29/2020 3:34 AM (GMT 0)
Good luck Dave!
Posted 1/29/2020 4:07 AM (GMT 0)
Come on in Dave.
Posted 1/29/2020 4:53 AM (GMT 0)
Welcome to HW, sorry you need to be here.

By all means, live life to the full. Squeeze out all you can.

Depression is common post-op, but sounds like that's better now.

Ask all the questions you have, we're here most days.
Andrew
Posted 1/29/2020 5:48 AM (GMT 0)
Hi, Dave. If you went to Cleveland Clinic you were right behind me. I traveled there in March 2018 from Montana for my RALP. That place was top notch compared to what we have here on the prairie.
Posted 1/29/2020 12:32 PM (GMT 0)
Hi Dave .....Dave here ..also from Ohio..Akron....I feel for you on your journey and hope you will stay with us along the way ...we all live with our personal tragedies....so hard at times ...hang in there and know we care .......Peace and Love
Posted 2/1/2020 4:52 AM (GMT 0)
Hey all, end of a nerve-wracking week. I finally dumped my urologist who is a very poor communicator and went to the Cleveland Clinic. I start with a medical oncologist on February 5. I feel a sense of relief. I tried to create a signature with an overview of my medical history and I hope it is what people are looking for. I did my best but the uro I dumped was a miserably poor communicator. Being on Firmagon, The Land Down Under is dead in the water but I just plain don't care. I have more time to devote to some cranial interests I have. No wife or partner here and yes, life gets lonely but I keep trying to do my best every day. I 'd really like to stick around as long as possible since I have a lot of dreams I still want to realize. Thanks for listening.
Posted 2/1/2020 7:50 AM (GMT 0)
Hey Dave, greetings from a 'used to be' neighbor of yours. If you handle includes your zip code, and you've always lived there, we may have grown up in the same school district. Small world time. My dad was on the faculty at B-W and my mother taught grade school music.

I'm glad to hear that you're in at the Cleveland Clinic--they are excellent, and you'll get what you need there. My dad was treated there for his PC many years ago now, he was diagnosed in 1992 and passed away from this miserable thing in 2004.
Posted 2/1/2020 11:15 AM (GMT 0)
I wish you well during this chapter of your journey. Denis
Posted 2/1/2020 2:28 PM (GMT 0)
Welcome to club no one want's to be in....
As mentioned above there are a lot of good people here willing to help.
I know I lucked out when I found this place....
Hang in there and God Bless....
Posted 2/1/2020 2:32 PM (GMT 0)

Hello, Dave ---

You will find a band of brothers here, to be sure.

You mentioned that you are pursuing chemotherapy. I did exactly the same --- and it's important to note this was over 5 years ago now. That leaves me an advocate for the importance of this treatment, as it certainly helped me.

My treatment history is shown below, at the end of this message. After a diagnosis of metastatic prostate cancer in my 40s, I am grateful to be stepping into my 7th year of survivorship.

I have some solid advice to help you navigate your chemotherapy infusions.

Go to the top of your screen and find the search box. You might see a magnifying glass icon that shows where the search feature is located.

Type in this thread title in the search box, as follows:

Taxotere Side Effects.

Click on "Taxotere Side Effects" and you will begin reading helpful, insightful, and first hand experiences put together by our members here.

You will learn ways to mitigate side effects that are part of the chemotherapy experience.

The thread was begun by correspondent Madeline Smith and has helped many readers here during their series of chemotherapy treatments. Members here worked hard to document their experiences and the ways they overcame side effects.

Check it out, and let us know how you're faring!

Handshake, support, brotherhood,
Cyclone - Iowa State University
Posted 2/1/2020 4:01 PM (GMT 0)
Dave - Great to hear that things are lining up for you. I am glad you are feeling some relief from this process starting to gel and you should find that a plan will start coming together on Wednesday with more clarity.

Your signature is a good first try. You should assume that you will create some new posts in the future and the signature should concisely tell your story so that a new reader will be up to speed without reading the old threads. Maybe add your age and score, "63 with PSA 10.1 in Jan 2018, RP on 6 April, 2018, G8?", where the metastasis was located and how, and so on. Just a few more numbers and words would help a lot.

I can only imagine how hard PCa is to handle alone. While this forum will help with that, you might want to find a PCa support group in the Cleveland area that the oncologist may be able to suggest. I did not do this but did get a list early on from one of the doctors, my breast cancer survivor wife and a former co-worker with PCa served that purpose for me. Sometimes it can really help to talk with others in a similar situation.
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