L
J lives in Nevada, USA. He was 45 when he was diagnosed in October 2002. His initial
PSA was 3.8 ng/ml, his Gleason Score was 6 and he was staged T1c. His choice of
treatment was RRP (Retropubic Radical Prostatectomy). Here is his story.
I
was diagnosed in October, 2002. After getting a second opinion, I opted for UCLA
and DeKernion did the surgery on January 10, 2003 - it was nerve sparing Radical
Retropubic Prostatectomy. My staging after surgery was T2b and my Gleason Score
was 7.
Two urethral stricture surgeries followed - one surgery two months
after RRP and the second a year after. I had pelvic floor pain for about six years
after my RRP - Flomax helped.
Peyronie's
Disease two years after RRP - erection pain along with that which is still
with me. No cure for Peyronie's.
I wish I would have done more research
on my treatment options. I regret my decision to this day that I opted for Radical
- if I could do it over I would have done the Da Vinci surgery. Too late now.
[Studies have shown that the outcomes as
far as side effects and survival are concerned
about the same with either type of surgery - what
counts is the expertise of the surgeon and of course, the physical aspects of
the man having the surgery. It is said that it takes a minimum of 250 procedures
for a surgeon to gain expertise in the Da Vinci procedure - it is doubtful that
many, if any, surgeons in the US would have had that experience in 2002.]
I
am cancer free now for 7 years but the side effects are still with me and it's
tough But everyone says you should be lucky your alive - that's a tough subject
to discuss. LUCKY is a relative term..
LJ's e-mail address is: patronrus@cox.net
