Doug
G lives in Ohio, USA. He was 49 when he was diagnosed on January 4, 2010. His
initial PSA was 3.37 ng/ml, his Gleason Score was 6 and although he does not give
his staging, it seems he would have been staged T1c. He is undecided as to his
choice of treatment. Here is his story.
To begin my story, I should start
by telling you that I went to my family doctor in November 2009 for an "annual"
physical. I had been in an accident in my van where a young girl hit my driver's
side after running a stop sign. The girl's car rolled my van onto the side, where
it skidded 25 feet, then rolled over 4-5 times before it landed back on the tires,
where I managed to brake before I hit a stone pylon 10 feet in front of me. Amazingly,
I unstrapped myself, kicked open the passenger door, and crawled out. I didn't
have a single scratch on me. The van was totalled. It had the side and back door
windows blown out, 3 of the four tires were flat, the windshield was smashed in,
and the roof even had a crease which ran front to back along the middle of the
roof. That accident occurred on Wednesday, September 30th, and I ended up going
to the hospital on Friday night when my neck felt a bit stiff and my shoulder
was a little sore. They took me right in and did tons of x-rays. Everything looked
good considering what I had been through. I did have a few micro-tears in my shoulder
which healed over a two month period but didn't give me too much of a problem
other than keeping me from working out with my trainer at the level I was used
to. I left the hospital 2 hours later with some meds to help the soreness in my
shoulder. I have been going to a chiropractor since then and my lower back is
doing pretty good.
The physical was rather matter-of-fact and included
a blood test, but no manual check of my prostate. I knew that a PSA was done because
of my age and the fact that my Father had prostate cancer.
A few days
later, a nurse called from my doctor's office and explained that I had an elevated
PSA result and my doctor wanted me to see a urologist. I received a letter from
the urologist I was referred to for an appointment on December 14th. I am sure
that the delay in the referral was entirely the responsibility of my family doctor.
He is one of a dozen or so doctors and the office feels much like factory. None
of his staff are particularly friendly or caring. I have decided not to return
to him.
My urologist, who cannot be much older than 35 or so was very nice.
I started the visit by giving a urine sample and having an intern do a manual
exam of my prostate. When I spoke to the urologist, he had explained that my PSA
of 3.37 sent to him from my family doctor had elevated from 1.11 three years prior.
He said that it was really my option of what to do. I could wait a year and do
another PSA and go from there or I could opt for a biopsy. By nature, I am not
a gambler. I figured I would go ahead and do the biopsy, get positive results,
and feel good about making that decision. I was scheduled for the biopsy the following
Monday right before Christmas. I must admit, I was surprised they could get me
in so soon.
It's really hard to described the biopsy to someone else.
But for me, the biopsy was not a big deal at all. They started by inserting 2%
lidocaine jelly and allowed me to lay on my stomach for 10 minutes. The ultrasound
probe itself didn't bother me. Even the gun didn't hurt. It was more the sound
that was unnerving. It sounds like they were cocking a kid's gun and pulling the
trigger - 12 times. The sound made me jump a little each time it went off. I honestly
felt no pain.
Before I left, I was told that there might be a little blood
in my urine, my semen, and my bowel. I was told not to have any sexual activity
for 4 days. No problem. I am gay and single. There was a little blood in my bowel
but was gone after a few bowel movements. My urine was only slightly pink in color
for twice. I must say that I wish that someone had explained what my semen would
look like during my first few ejaculations. The first, on day five, was mostly
the result of curiosity. It was a bit shocking. The volume of the ejaculate was
about 4 times that of a regular ejaculation and looked like solid blood. I was
afraid that I should have waited longer. I was on the internet immediately. I
only found one mention that was similar to mine. The next 3 ejaculations was about
the same but slightly less in volume. The next 10 or so ejaculations were very
pink in color. It was almost 2 weeks and 15 or so ejaculations later before my
ejaculations seemed normal. It was a relief.
On January 4th, I was scheduled
to return for the results. On that day, I arrived and was asked for another urine
sample. Then, my doctor came in and broke the news. I had had 12 samples. Eleven
cores came back negative, and one was positive. It was 5% on that one core and
had a Gleason score of 3+3=6. He asked if I had any questions and while I did,
I couldn't believe that I was mostly just interested in leaving the office. He
went over possible options but I really wasn't listening that much. He asked what
I thought. I told him that I thought I would have another blood test in 6 months
and we could go from there. I left the office very surprised even after knowing
I was in a higher risk category due to my results and my Father's cancer.
One
week went by and I decided to move the blood test up to 3 months. I will be going
back on April 5th for the results of my next blood test. I am still not sure of
what I will do at that point. Part of me feels like I should have another biopsy
and part of me just wants to go ahead and schedule the robotic surgery and be
done with it.
I like my doctor but I am concerned that he has not performed
enough of the surgeries to make me feel comfortable. It will be one of the first
questions I have for him. There is another doctor in the practice who is ranked
in the top ten of robotic surgeries in the United States. He has performed over
a thousand prostate surgeries and he posts his results online. He is the director
of robotic surgery at Ohio State Medical Center. So, I think I would be in good
hands if he turns out to be the doctor I choose for the surgery.
Well,
that's where I am at the moment. I will try to post again before my next appointment
in April to let you know what I am thinking as I approach my decision.
Later:
I just joined YANA a few days ago with my first post. I have been reading the
posts of this site ever since I was diagnosed Jan. 4, 2010. It has been a very
valuable site to me and extremely informative. It's nice being able to read the
perspectives of others dealing with PC.
Part
of what I wanted to express during my first post about having a terrible van accident
and then finding out that I have PC, is that that accident may very well be responsible
for saving my life or at the very least bringing my challenge to attention sooner
than later. I remember telling everyone how lucky I felt surviving that accident.
If you had seen the pictures of my van, you would understand why. When I saw the
van for the first time after my accident a week later, it made me feel physically
ill. It also was a very emotional experience. I am actually a very level-headed
pragmatic person. I remember crawling out of the van, finding my cell phone on
the ground 15 feet from my van, then finding the battery which had come out of
the phone and dialing my personal trainer to let him know I wouldn't be able to
make my appointment. I remember a witness asking if I was calling the ambulance.
I guess I was a little in shock at that moment. I am the type who just faces my
situation, whatever it is, and figures out how to face it. After that accident,
I found it hard to sleep for months. What made it worse is that I have sleep apnea
and so what sleep I did get, was not recuperative. Now, the PC has made me almost
forget that I even had that accident. Though I must admit reading articles about
PC online, often later in the evening, doesn't help my sleep. I have had to limit
the amount of information I can process about PC in one day.
Amazingly,
I have already had several people send me emails with suggestions and support
since I posted a few days ago. That really made feel like I am not alone. Thanks
Guys.
I
decided just the other day to move my next PSA test and appointment with my doctor
to March 8th. I really didn't take the time to talk to him in January when I first
go the diagnosis. Now I have lots of questions for him including a lot about his
credentials and experience. I think there is a good chance I will switch to another
doctor who does about 2 robotic surgeries a day. He's also one of the top ten
robotic surgeons in the United States.
I
will send in another update after my next doctor's appt.
Doug's e-mail
address is: agoodguy43212@yahoo.com
