Hello Newbie, Regarding your Dad's recovery, first things first. open surgery requires a significant time to recover from and then there is the catheter period, then there is the continence control...
Rick, Your question is an excellent one. I reserched this issue prior to surgery 1.5 years ago as my Doc has extensive experience in both. The data is simply not out there regarding whether there are...
Mike, Oops. I did forget my decimal points... Ted ...
Gents, including those reading and wondering, After 15 months of waiting for nature to help, I too finally took the plunge(r) and tried Trimix. My Doc suggested the opposite approach apparently by...
I agree with most here, however I wanted second opinion and sent slides to Hopkins. Epstein dowwngraded mine from 3+4 to 3+3. It did give me some comfort but as my doc said, "It's still PCa" and...
Oh, I guess we all forgot to mention the adminitrative hassles that accompany the physical, surgical and anxiety hassles. It is all a test. Deep breath. Ted...
Horton, I must agree with the majority here that it is peculiar for a surgeon to ask the question in advance. Further, if the biopsy did not show that the PCa extruded outside the prostate, the...
Tall guy, It takes about two weeks to get back to work. There is the basic recovery from surgery and the catheter perios which is close to 2 weeks. I went back after the catheter was out and kept a...
Dad lover, Don't go out and buy a ton of stuff. I believe that you will find if his experience is like many, that at first a larger pad (like those women wear on heavy days) cut in half,...
Do them. Later on it will be helpful to "pucker up" when lifting, sneezing or getting out of a deep chair when you might be prone to a little "spurt." I still do them when I think about it. Ted...
T-Dog, Several of us are serious cyclists. I ride about 2000 miles/year and was most concerned about the implications of surgery. I had laproscopic surgery and it took about 3 months to be totally...
Amy, Thankyou for sharing with us. PCa will take 27,000 this year and I am sorry it touched your family. best wishes, Ted...
B, The best thing you can do for him is what many wives did for most of us...be there for him. It is a family journey no doubt, but the process is his and holding his hand and giving comfort is the...
Welcome to the other side. Find your favorite place to sit and relax. Rent alot of movies. You will develop a method for dealing with the new plumbing appendages after a few days. This is an interim...
Mel, et.al, Walsh is obviously very accomplished and as he says in his book, prefers "[b] open" surgery so he can feel the subjects of his efforts. Most men in this forum refer only to 2 techniques:...
Mel, Throughout your inquiries you seem to have been super-ready to jump the gun in anticipation of the result. For your own sake and the sake of your family, once again, take a deeeeep breath. With...
Whitey, Great attitude...makeing choice and moving on. We have all been there and where you are now is probably the hardest part: deciding what to do. I will note that Dr. Patrick Walsh...
Jennifer, No use in duplicating responses about report: it is good. What is next is the recovery chapter. Now without being tethered to a bag, it is a wonderful feeling but once again, the next...
Consider getting back in to kegels, especially when walking. It sure can't hurt to tune up the platform. Ted...
Loudie, Our partners have been a very important part of our recoveries and I commend you for reaching out on behalf of your partner. Regarding the pain, remember that he had a significant and...
Jerry, Not to panic. Go to a book store and pick up one of several very good books about the subject. Your request is so broad and there are so many variables that having a broader undestanding of...
Ralph, All issues in life pale when compared to your situation. Though time now is a thick fog, as we all did with our wives when facing the fact of PCa, we took it one day at a time and leaned on...
If you are a red blooded male and they did not remove your testacles while they were in the neighborhood, you in all liklihood will still like to look at the ladies. I do. Ted...
Here are the facts, followed by the question: I had surgery in April and after 3 months was continent. I have been taking Cialis 20mg/day (ADC) since surgery as a "help the blood flow" tool but it...
Interesting stories. I travel alot and am an active cyclist. What I do is when I pass a men's room or rest stop at an interval of time when I know there should be contents in my bladder, I use the...
Guys, You are all right, this place is a site for information and perhaps more, comfort. I told my Doc about it and he suggested that the web forums are where those with higher grade issues dwell....
Paperboy, Welcome to Post-catheter world. Do your kegels and give yourself time to get revamped plumbing system under control. I noticed that there wasn't a men's room that I could pass by during...
Jack, To follow up on "back to normal" comment....NOT. No way in one week or two weeks. Give yourself six to eight weeks to heal internally. There have been several stories on this forum where guys...
Welcome to a new perspective. Take time to get used to the tubes and be patient, as the cliche "one day at a time" never meant more to me than during recovery. It's all downhill from here. best...
Grouch, Like us all, the hardest decision was what to do and where. You made the decision and there is no looking back. Bet wishes in your treatment. Ted...
Beach comber, Give yourself a break. progress comes slowly. You should be in to kegel exercises off and on all day. Your new plumbing system including those muscles need to be trained so that they...
Brothers in the Battle, In the war called cancer there are so many fronts that it boggles the mind. Having been involuntarily drafted into the journey my mind is now opened to a universe that I only...
Perfectly normal and on cue. Next step, letting go of the appendage and flying on your own. It is a great feeling to be able to take a shower, go for walk, do everything without being tethered. Best...
Doc, Eleven days is nothing in this journey. Measure your progress by the week, not the day and you will see that you have made progress. I found that I would do kegels any time I thought about...
Your story illustrates the question about biopsies: did it find the needle in a haystack, or the tip of the iceberg. Obviously it was the tip of the iceberg. You did a great follow-up for yourself....
Zim and guys, The process of digesting the fact that you are one in six or seven men and "why me?" was horrible for most of us. Then we got busy studying and deciding. The fact is Zim, that it will...
Bill, You received alot of data regarding pads but I don't think that your question was answered. For most* guys the road to dryness takes a bit of time but immediately after catheter removal your...
Welcome to the other side. Relax and get some movies while the days tick by. about[b] the time that you are sick of CNN it will be time to go to the next step: catheter removal. [2]I recall just...
Doc, One day at a time. You should notice differences on a week by week basis. I went from larger pads 2x day to smaller thin ones and then to 1/2 a thin one and then, eventually none. It took a...
Jack, A common denominator for most of us, regardless of the numbers is that we got alot of support from significant others. In fact many spouses/girl friends actually dig in to the details and...
Good evening, Look at the resources available for studying various treatments. There are many good books describing almost every treatment options. You cannot really decide w/o studying and there are...
Klaats, From my experience,research and discussions with docs, there is no bright line demarcation between Gleason 3 and 4 so that there could be variance between pathologists. My data is similar...
Sonny, The first few weeks are unpredictable so be careful. There is no rush to prove you are dry. For all you know, you may sneeze after you snuggle and "spirt" , gosh darn, a wet spot. It does...
Tell him: "Do it!" I did get some comfort when Dr. Epstein down graded me from 3+4 to 3+3 as it took some urgency out of my fears. But it was, as my home Doc said, "still cancer." your hubby will...
I did it with Epstein. Call Hopkins and the folks in the pathology department there will tell you exactly what to do. They are very experienced in second opinions....
Sonny, Now that you are on the other side, as with most us us there is a groundswell of relief. The next chapters require patience, one step at a time. We all share a similar experience and yet it...
Joe, You might consider sending patholgy info. for second opinion as you consider your situation. I had 2/12 positive results with low volume. Original pathologist said 3-4 Gleason, John-Hopkins said...
Hello, I would like to chime in on both issues; 1) Blood and small clots are normal for some time as there is alot of healing going on in there. As long as it does not appear to be bright red and...
Doggy, Your hubby is as we say here "on the other side" and sounds like he is doing very well considering all factors. I often say here, and I have seen it repeated, "measure progress on a weekly...
Gopher, One thing that all newbies must do as initiation to this unique club is get educated. Go to the bookstore this weekend, go to medical section and buy one of several very informative books...