YANA - YOU ARE NOT ALONE NOW

PROSTATE CANCER SUPPORT SITE

 

SILVER

Alan Charlton and Beryl live in England. Alan was 52 when he was diagnosed on 22 January 2003. His initial PSA was 1,500 ng/ml and his Gleason Score was 5+4=9. He was staged T4 and his only treatment option was Hormone. Here is his story:

Hi,

My story started back in November 2002. My wife Beryl advised me to stop drinking ( I was drinking a bottle of red wine every evening) as I was always tired and felt listless exhausted , so I took her advice.

Two months later I collapsed with unbearable pains in my back, was taken to hospital and found that I had advanced prostate cancer that had metasized to my bones (the whole skeleton) - this was after 2 bone scans.

The consultant put me on Zoladex, and sent me home , with six months to two years to live.

I was not happy with the urologist, so set about seeing a oncologist, who turn out to be a woman. She promptly gave me only 6 to 9 months to live. By this time I had gone back to the wine, and started to feel a bit better, so I went to see another urologist.

He was very good although his prognosis was about a year. He offered me Zometa and also Casodex as my PSA had started to rise after several months of lowering PSAs. He felt that i was not one to give in so sent me to a neighbouring county to see yet another oncologist, who said the medical world could do no more , only that my inner self-belief could keep me going.

Well I do believe my inner self-belief is working with the aid of a bottle of red wine a day. The last eight months has seen my psa stablise to 0.10 ng/ml, today's date is 1 March 2005 - over two years since my diagnosis, and I never felt better.

Never say die!

 

UPDATED

September 2006

 

This year has been a good year, however PSA has started to rise, from 0.1 ng/ml to 2.1 ng/ml but urologist doesn't think its time to change any treatments as yet, so I have been adding various supplements, Isoflavones, Spirulina, Chlorella.

I don't see the urologist again until mid October.

 

UPDATED

May 2008

 

 

2007: PSA started this year at 4.0 and finished this year on 17.7. No change of treatment still feeling good , no pain ,swim half a mile every day, living life to the full.

2008: sees my PSA rise to 45.7 . By May have now added Avodart to the list of hormone therapy, Zoladex, Casodex and Zometa.

 

UPDATED

September 2009

 

 

24th July 2008: started on ethynylestradiol 1mg ( 1 tablet a day ) + 75mg aspirin and stopped Casodex 150mg still no pain and feeling fine

28th August 2008: PSA down to 82.8

14th September 2008: stopped all painkillers

22nd September 2008: PSA down to 74.2

21st October 2008: PSA up to 100.4

10th November 2008: PSA up to 159.4

25th November 2008: PSA up to 192.6 stopped oestrogen back on Casodex 150mg

8th December 2008: PSA up to 207.5

16th January 2009 PSA up to 243 no pain no problems

9th February 2009: PSA up again to 365

24th February 2009: saw urologist started me back on Avodart booked me for MRI scan, changed my Zometa timing will now have Zometa every 21 days instead of 28 days, told me my original PSA at diagnosis was 2,100 not 1,500 as I was led to believe. I'm still feeling good , thanks to the red wine.

March 9, 2009 PSA up to 526. No pain , feeling perplexed to the increase , all my other blood test are very good, will carry on regardless.

April 3, 2009: PSA now at a staggering 1,252 - still swimming half a mile a day still feeling fine ,bone scan shows increased activity to left femur and spine and right ribs and hot spots to my skull ; still feeling positive , stopped Casodex and Avodart. Consultant yet to be informed , feeling fine , started low dose steroid dexamethasone.

25th June 2009: PSA down to 1,370 still feeling good; no pains, must be the steroids.

17th July 2009: PSA 1,361

28th July 2009: PSA 2,365 yet still remain with that ,good to be alive feeling 1

7th August 2009: PSA 1,627 still feeling well

25th August 2009: PSA 1,958 consultant thinks starting back on Casodex and Avodart, may have a good response after being off them for five months

September 7th 2009: PSA 1,002 cancer specialist now thinks that since having Zometa every three weeks instead of four, has had a profound effect on my PSA results. I'm still feeling on top of the world , keep smiling and drinking the red wine.

Old Al

Al's e-mail address is: tallyho5455@yahoo.co.uk