YANA - YOU ARE NOT ALONE NOW

PROSTATE CANCER SUPPORT SITE

BRONZE

Robert Curtis and Kay live in Kansas, USA. He was 55 when he was diagnosed on April 1, 2008. His initial PSA was 24.0 ng/ml, his Gleason Score was 8 and he was staged T1c. His choice of treatment was Radical Prostatectomy. Here is his story.

I have had a steadily rising PSA that we have watched for several years. I had two biopsies that came back negative but still the PSA went up. When it reached PSA 20, I had a month of antibiotics and a re-test. After a month it was up to 24. My third biopsy found cancer. My Gleason score is 8.

For now, I plan my vacation to South Africa for 2 weeks of hunting in May and a Radical Prostatectomy on June 2. After that I will come back to chronicle the progress. I will admit, I am afraid.

 

UPDATED

June 2008

 

 

I had my surgery on June 2nd. It went very well. I was out of the hospital after 2 days and back at work in 2 weeks. I have pretty good bladder control already. There has been no attempts to check out my ability to maintain an erection. I hope to remedy that soon.

The pathology report shows that my Gleason Score was off by one. I now know that my Gleason Score is 9. I had 50% cancer involvement in my prostate with 3 positive margins. My seminal vesicles and lymph nodes were clear of cancer.

I meet with a radiologist tomorrow for planning the next step. Since I had postive margins my urologist and surgeon think that I should get radiation treatment.

 

UPDATED

August 2008

 

 

Six weeks after my radical prostetectomy I got my PSA results on August 5th. I was stunned! My PSA is 8.0. That is without a prostate. We were planning on radiation since I had 3 postive margins but that is on hold. I took my first Lupron injection the same day and have been on daily Casodex since diagnosis on April 1st. The plan now is to wait until the Lupron works its magic and then radiation.

No side effects yet except I am always tired. It never seems to go away. This morning I woke up at 5 AM and was tired and very anxious. I know some of what is ahead and am not looking forward to it.

 

UPDATED

October 2008

 

 

This is just a quick update.

I have been on Lupron for 4 weeks and my PSA has dropped from 8.0 to .8. I will be starting radiation on October 13, 2008. For me there has been some depression, weight gain and muscle loss from the testosterone drop. Also, I have lost all interest in sex. My wife is a patient soul and has been really supportive. The hot flashes are not too bad.

I will report again after the 7 week radiation treatment and another 4 months of Lupron. Probably by April of 09 I will be finishing up on both. Of course a recurrence is quite possible but I am eager to get back to a more normal life.

Robert's e-mail address is: bob@equalforce.org