Rising PSA 6 years after Prostatectomy
6 years ago, I had prostatectomy. No chemo or radiation and I did not have clear surgical margins. 3 mm of the tumor was against the prostate wall. Everything was fine up until a year ago when PSA became detectable at .10. Started every 3-month PSA tests. PSA went up .02 every 3 months up to a .18. Went today for a test and it is now down to a .13. Anyone else experience this downfall in their PSA?
Hi
. It certainly is understandable that PSA showing up is stressful. I can't personally speak to this situation, but I know that a rise in PSA and then fall can happen and not be recurrent cancer. There can be benign residual prostate tissue left behind that can release low levels of PSA that can go up and down. That said, it is important to keep an eye on any PSA after prostatectomy. Generally 0.2 is the level doctors look at for recurrent cancer and this is also where the PSMA PET scan for locating recurrent cancer becomes viable (see: https://prostatecancer.net/clinical/psma-imaging-scan). Hope this information is helpful and please feel free to keep us posted and to ask further questions. Best, Richard (Team Member)
