Prostate cancer treatments: side effects

zachareth · New User Joined: 26 Aug 2009 Posts: 1

I'm from Singapore. My father aged 54 has been diagnosed with prostate cancer [PSA 58ng/ml, Gleason score 7(3+4)] and I'm very concerned for his well-being.

I know there are treatment options of surgery, radiotherapy and hormonal therapy. I would like to know more about these options and their side-effects and which option is preferable.

Even if my father is cured, can he continue to live a normal life? I've heard that there may be problems with incontinence. My father is still quite young and I don't want him to suffer for the rest of his life.

johnT · Senior User Joined: 27 Apr 2009 Posts: 177

What has your father's doctor told him?
A psa of 57 indicates metastsis to the lymphnodes and a local cure will not be effective. With a psa that high the doctor should be running futher tests on lymphnodes at least a CT scan and a bone scan. The combidex MRI is also available in Holland to screen for suspected lymph node involvement. Until this is resolved you shouldn't be looking at any treatments.
Pick up a copy of "Beating Prostate Cancer; Hormone therapy and Diet; by Dr Charles Snuffy Myers; it will explain how you can easily live with advanced PC.
Good luck
JohnT
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psa at diagnosis 40 in nov-08
gleason 6 and 7
Treatment choice seeds and IMRT

notme · Guest

I'm betting that PSA is 5.7 not 57.

If I am right, then he has caught it early and has a very high chance of being absolutely fine the rest of his long life.

you could also look into ultrasound, it's what I had done, here's a link and story, http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/131539.php

Best of luck, you live in a beautiful perfect country!!

John M · Experienced user Joined: 27 Jul 2009 Posts: 59

The right treatment depends on many specific details of his condition, which you may not know. Singapore is reputed to have an excellent health care system, and talking to his doctors would be a good start. Another would be reading a book which gives an overview of prostate cancer basics. Several are listed at the top of this page. A good example is

Walsh, Patrick C., and Janet Farrar Worthington. Dr. Patrick Walsh's Guide to Surviving Prostate Cancer. 2nd edition.
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John

Replicant · Moderator Joined: 01 Nov 2006 Posts: 744

You can try out your father's stats on the UroPredict tool at http://www.bostwicklaboratories.com/uropredict/uropredict.aspx or the Partin tables at: http://urology.jhu.edu/prostate/partintables.php .

Best wishes.
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Replicant

Dx Feb 2006, PSA 9 @age 43
RRP Apr 2006 - Gleason 3+4, T2c, NXMX, pos margins
PSA 5/06 <0.1, 8/06 0.2, 12/06 0.6, 1/07 0.7.
Salvage radiation (IMRT) total dose 70.2 Gy, Jan-Mar 2007@ age 44
PSA 6/07 0.1, 9/07 (and thereafter) <0.1
http://pcabefore50.blogspot.com

Marathon Man · Regular Joined: 17 Jan 2008 Posts: 49 Location: Ireland

[quote="zachareth"]Even if my father is cured, can he continue to live a normal life? I've heard that there may be problems with incontinence. My father is still quite young and I don't want him to suffer for the rest of his life.[/quote]

Hi Zachareth,
The others have addressed the treatment side, so I'll try to reassure you with the second part of your query.

There are no definite answers or guarantees, each of us is different, with different treatments and different outcomes. Having said that, your father is young and I assume reasonably fit and otherwise reasonably healthy. This will stand to him in a big way. This is something I can't emphasise too much - it is a [u]major[/u] plus.

If I was to advise him to do anything before his treatment, it would be to get himself in shape (without going overboard on it!), i.e to exercise and lose some unnecessary weight he might have - easier said than done (I 'comfort ate' lots of Ben & Jerry's ice cream). The fitness is more critical if he has an open RP (I did), as his abdominal muscles will be, to all intent and purposes, non existent. I expect that it won't be as bad if he has laprascopic surgery and all the other treatments are easier on the abdomen.

Incontinence is a risk for all treatments, with reported levels varying. With some treatment, especially surgery, the effects are seen straight away and generally improve with time. With other treatment, e.g. radiation, the deterioration in continence is gradual. As the others have advised, research all treatments - know your enemy! - and compare both the short term and long term side effects.

The main decision is what treatment to have and, in particular, who is going to do it.

In all probability, given your fathers age and likely general health, any incontinence is probably going to be relatively short lived and there is no reason why he can't live a 'normal' life after treatment. This is a scary time for you, but this will pass.

Good luck.
MM
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Marathon Man

PSA May 06, then 6 monthly; 4.3-4.9-6.8, Dx Feb 2008, PSA 9.4 @age 54 - Biopsy Gleason 4+3
RRP 22 May 2008 - Gleason 4+4, Tumour Vol 5%, T2a, N0M0, Negative Margins. Aug 08, PSA <0.01, Feb 09 <0.02, Sep 09 <0.02

http://prostaterunner.blogspot.com/ Irregularly updated & months behind!

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