4th February 2008
[COLOR="DarkGreen"]Hi Barbara,
I've already read your original post and now seven responses. You've had a lot of key advice, so I won't cover that ground again, but I would like to give you some additional thoughts.
[QUOTE=wv_lady_us;3422837]I came home last Thursday and my husband told me that he had prostate cancer. ... Needless to say I was shocked.
[COLOR="darkgreen"]Does your statement ever bring back memories! At age 56 I was returning from an allergy shot after having gotten a routine physical a few days before where the doctor pronounced me fine and told me he didn't think I needed a PSA test. I insisted. My PSA was 113.6, and the report had a scrawled note at the bottom. Get appointment ASAP! Yes, stunned and shocked, as was my wife when I opened the garage door and told her I had some bad news.
He has an appointment to see a doctor next Thursday for consultation about what how to treat this cancer. Im going with him and I am going to try to be as supportive as I can, but Im really scared. I had a brother that avoided his symptoms and he died from prostate cancer.
[COLOR="darkgreen"]You said the critical words: "avoided his symptoms." That's a formula for dying from prostate cancer in many cases as there are often no symptoms until the cancer is well advanced. If your husband's cancer was truly caught early, his chances for survival are excellent, and you may be surprised at the quality of life you and your husband will enjoy. For the first weeks after diagnosis, my wife and I wondered if we would ever have a joyful day again. Even though my case was clearly challenging, we found joyful days much sooner than we had anticipated.
The good news is the doctor told him they caught it early, but I feel so bad for him because he's all ready had heart surgeries, hernia surgeries, gallbladder surgery, anuyrism surgery and other surgeries and I am so scared of this thing and of losing him. ...
[COLOR="darkgreen"]You bring up a critical point that has not yet been addressed in responses, though I hope that will change. When there are such significant other health conditions, prostate cancer may be the least of your husband's worries, and that overall health context should have a huge bearing on the approach to the cancer. Heart and aneurism trouble are major concerns, usually more so than prostate cancer. That's especially true in men around 70 and older. How old is your husband? For example, I read again and again that doctors recommend against surgery for men at or near 70 who are not in good health. Prostate cancer surgery and its aftermath are a significant strain on the system, and blood clots are common. While clots do no harm at all for most patients because they are usually small, they are often apparently a real danger for older men with heart and cardiovascular trouble. As daff and able5 have pointed out, we are not doctors, so please bear that in mind too. But some of these points are very well established principles that you will discover yourself if you read.
If the cancer is fairly mild, your husband may not need to do anything, though learning about tactics involving nutrition, exercise (to the extent he can do it) and stress reduction could help. So might low key medications like statin drugs (perhaps he's already on one), finasteride or Avodart. All of those are prescription drugs, and you and your husband would need to learn about them and discuss them with a good doctor. If the cancer was caught early but is more of a concern, hormonal blockade by drugs might be all that is needed, though there are some issues when a man has heart and other cariovascular conditions. Beyond surgery, radiation and cryosurgery (freezing) are often fairly low-intrusive options that older men, or men with other significant health conditions, may tolerate better. Bottom line: there are options.
It appears there are different ways to treat this surgery, but it seems to me if I had a tumor in my body I would want it out period. Ultimately it will be his decision.
[COLOR="darkgreen"]I think most of us want to just get it out, especially at the beginning. However, we need to aim before we shoot, or we are liable to miss. Keep this in mind: since prostate cancer is a slow growing disease for the vast majority of us, your husband has probably had it for years. In fact, for men over 50, prostate cancer is NORMAL. In other words, more men have it than do not, though most do not know it - I'm obviously not saying it's a good thing. While about one out of six men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in their lifetimes, only about one in thirty or so will die of it. If your husband's case is truly mild (such as stage T2a, Gleason Scoreof 6 or lower with no grade 4 or 5 cancer (two grades are combined to make the score), PSA of 10 or lower, no increase of PSA in the year before diagnosis of more than 2, only one core positive or only up to about 3 if many cores were taken, no high percentage of a core positive), then "active surveillance" could be an ideal approach for him. Right now, it is too early to say. Make sure your husband's doctor gives you all this information that he has.
Im going to pray hard for him...
[COLOR="darkgreen"]I believe in that too!
Barbara
[COLOR="darkgreen"]Take care and good luck to you both.
Jim
I've already read your original post and now seven responses. You've had a lot of key advice, so I won't cover that ground again, but I would like to give you some additional thoughts.
[QUOTE=wv_lady_us;3422837]I came home last Thursday and my husband told me that he had prostate cancer. ... Needless to say I was shocked.
[COLOR="darkgreen"]Does your statement ever bring back memories! At age 56 I was returning from an allergy shot after having gotten a routine physical a few days before where the doctor pronounced me fine and told me he didn't think I needed a PSA test. I insisted. My PSA was 113.6, and the report had a scrawled note at the bottom. Get appointment ASAP! Yes, stunned and shocked, as was my wife when I opened the garage door and told her I had some bad news.
He has an appointment to see a doctor next Thursday for consultation about what how to treat this cancer. Im going with him and I am going to try to be as supportive as I can, but Im really scared. I had a brother that avoided his symptoms and he died from prostate cancer.
[COLOR="darkgreen"]You said the critical words: "avoided his symptoms." That's a formula for dying from prostate cancer in many cases as there are often no symptoms until the cancer is well advanced. If your husband's cancer was truly caught early, his chances for survival are excellent, and you may be surprised at the quality of life you and your husband will enjoy. For the first weeks after diagnosis, my wife and I wondered if we would ever have a joyful day again. Even though my case was clearly challenging, we found joyful days much sooner than we had anticipated.
The good news is the doctor told him they caught it early, but I feel so bad for him because he's all ready had heart surgeries, hernia surgeries, gallbladder surgery, anuyrism surgery and other surgeries and I am so scared of this thing and of losing him. ...
[COLOR="darkgreen"]You bring up a critical point that has not yet been addressed in responses, though I hope that will change. When there are such significant other health conditions, prostate cancer may be the least of your husband's worries, and that overall health context should have a huge bearing on the approach to the cancer. Heart and aneurism trouble are major concerns, usually more so than prostate cancer. That's especially true in men around 70 and older. How old is your husband? For example, I read again and again that doctors recommend against surgery for men at or near 70 who are not in good health. Prostate cancer surgery and its aftermath are a significant strain on the system, and blood clots are common. While clots do no harm at all for most patients because they are usually small, they are often apparently a real danger for older men with heart and cardiovascular trouble. As daff and able5 have pointed out, we are not doctors, so please bear that in mind too. But some of these points are very well established principles that you will discover yourself if you read.
If the cancer is fairly mild, your husband may not need to do anything, though learning about tactics involving nutrition, exercise (to the extent he can do it) and stress reduction could help. So might low key medications like statin drugs (perhaps he's already on one), finasteride or Avodart. All of those are prescription drugs, and you and your husband would need to learn about them and discuss them with a good doctor. If the cancer was caught early but is more of a concern, hormonal blockade by drugs might be all that is needed, though there are some issues when a man has heart and other cariovascular conditions. Beyond surgery, radiation and cryosurgery (freezing) are often fairly low-intrusive options that older men, or men with other significant health conditions, may tolerate better. Bottom line: there are options.
It appears there are different ways to treat this surgery, but it seems to me if I had a tumor in my body I would want it out period. Ultimately it will be his decision.
[COLOR="darkgreen"]I think most of us want to just get it out, especially at the beginning. However, we need to aim before we shoot, or we are liable to miss. Keep this in mind: since prostate cancer is a slow growing disease for the vast majority of us, your husband has probably had it for years. In fact, for men over 50, prostate cancer is NORMAL. In other words, more men have it than do not, though most do not know it - I'm obviously not saying it's a good thing. While about one out of six men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in their lifetimes, only about one in thirty or so will die of it. If your husband's case is truly mild (such as stage T2a, Gleason Scoreof 6 or lower with no grade 4 or 5 cancer (two grades are combined to make the score), PSA of 10 or lower, no increase of PSA in the year before diagnosis of more than 2, only one core positive or only up to about 3 if many cores were taken, no high percentage of a core positive), then "active surveillance" could be an ideal approach for him. Right now, it is too early to say. Make sure your husband's doctor gives you all this information that he has.
Im going to pray hard for him...
[COLOR="darkgreen"]I believe in that too!
Barbara
[COLOR="darkgreen"]Take care and good luck to you both.
Jim