Remove Prostate?

By drjbear

1 min read

Found out last week that I have prostate cancer, waiting now for results to see if it has spread. My Gleason score is a 9 out of 10, but my PSA was 1.3 last November and is now 1.7, the urologist does not have a clue why my PSA is not higher.

I will find out next Monday what he wants to do, I assume he will want to remove it. Would appreciate any suggestions.

Thanks

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scionreid Member
Hi drjbear, my PSA has always been in the 1.93 - 2.1 . It was the 4K blood test that showed I was at high risk. And yes I had cancer. I had my prostate removed. I caught it early and no further treatment is needed. I recomend that test to everyone now.
1. drjbear Member
 Thanks Scionreid, glad you caught it early, hopefully I have caught mine early, second opinion next week.
Will Jones Moderator
Hello <inline-mention user-id="3259875" username="drjbear"/> , I had my prostate removed in 2018 when my PSA rose to 8.3 and a biopsy found cancer in 10 of 12 core samples. My Gleason was a 3+3, but given my medical history, and after a year of active surveillance, I chose surgery. My PSA has been below 0.01 since then. Best wishes as you move forward with a treatment decision. I'm guessing your doctor will want you to have a bone and soft tissue scan before taking any action. That's the usual procedure after diagnosis.
1. drjbear Member
 Thanks Will, I had scan last week, it showed nothing outside of prostate. I am getting a second opinion next week. Glad you are doing well, thanks again.
2. Will Jones Moderator
 That's really good news! Please keep us informed of your progress.
ninaw Community Admin
Hi <inline-mention user-id="3259875" username="drjbear"/> , wondering if you have any updates to post? I think I saw somewhere you mentioned you were scheduled for surgery, but I may have misread. I few thoughts from the Facebook community: "There are two important points: PSA is an indicator of prostate cancer, but is not diagnostic and, in higher grade cancer, PSAs can be deceptively low! Always have a rectal exam done to determine abnormalities in the shape or "feel" of the gland..." "I would have my psa checked somewhere else ,but I had my prostate removed 14 months ago, I read on all the other options ,the robotic prostatectomy was the choice I made,since then my psa has been zero,I had a mri done first and then the biopsey followed by the surgery ,I'm pleased with the decision I made." "I would look at Proton Therapy, for no side effects and quality of Life. I did it myself. Look into it is worth it if you want to have a better life." "Case sharing can be helpful, but remember the decision as to which treatment option to take is yours. It is a stressful time, I know I have been there and hopefully the option I took (which I was and still am comfortable with) was the right choice. With a PSA of 8 and a biopsy detecting 3 tumours with Gleason scores of 9, 7 and 6 my urologist recommended radiation immediately. I then gained a second opinion from one of the top urologists in the country who said that surgery was warranted in the first instance, and if necessary radiation as a follow up. That was two months ago. I now feel well enough to resume my active physical lifestyle, admittedly with a couple of side effects, which hopefully will improve over time and with my head in a good space. I wish you well on your journey to a successful outcome. Good luck." "I recommend you thoroughly research all of your options. Remember if you go with radiation you cannot have your prostate removed later on. There have been men go with the radiation and then later the cancer returns and they want to have the prostate removed but radiation makes it very difficult to remove the prostate. I had a Gleason score of 6 , my PSA was 10.9 . I chose to have the robotic assisted surgery to remove my prostate. I'm glad I did even though some things will never be the same. For now my cancer is gone. There are no guarantees with cancer. It may be gone for good or it may return someday. If you have your prostate removed make sure you do kegel exercises everyday. Kegel exercises are very easy to do and are very important. Do your research and good luck with your treatment choice." "Only recommendation or opinion I have is to check with additional doctors with other specialties. Quick summary. My PSA started rising and I had a biopsy. 4+5 giving 9 total. PSA at that time was 6.0. I had consults with three doctors who were surgeons after the biopsy and all three said I would need radiation after removal. I even had surgery scheduled. I met with an oncologist who recommended a full course on IMRT plus seeds. I ran into a friend who had received a full course of Proton treatments and we were able to meet with his doctor 2 days later. He went through my case, checked all my tests, Bone scan, Cat scan and MRI. His suggestion was a split treatment of IMRT followed by a Proton Boost (new course of treatment specialized for the location of the tumor). My wife and I decided on this route. I also started a course of Lupron shots the same day to stall anymore grown of the tumor. That was June 18. Currently PSA 1 year after starting treatments at UF & Shands Proton Therapy Institute is <0.1. Prostate has shrunk to normal size. No urinary problems. Just finished my last shot 1 month ago. Every case is different but it never hurts to get multiple opinions. My insurance covered all the consults because I had already met my deductible." "drjbear, I’ll give you what happened to me, and I ended up having a Gleason 9. For years my PSA stayed at 0.6, and in April 2012, it went to 1.0, which my urologist said was fine and turned the page. But I said that’s a 67% increase, causing him to go back to look at the 0.6, and he realized I was right. Once he did, he said he’d do the next PSA in 6 months instead of 12. Six months later it’s 2.0 and six months after that it was 2.6, which means it more than quadrupled in 2 years. That rapid growth of our PSA is known as velocity, and a high velocity can also be a predictor of PCa. He did a biopsy, and it was reported I had a Gleason 8. He strongly suggested a prostatectomy, which I had done, and once pathology had the full prostate and all the cancer, it was determined I really had had a Gleason 9 (5+4). Bottom line is a Grade 5 grows twice as fast as a Grade 4 (Grade 4’s are also fast growers), which is why I had such a high velocity. I would ask him if the growth of the Grade 5 wasn’t the reason for your 13% increase in the PCa. Also, I’ve never heard of a 1.3 PSA resulting in a biopsy. What caused him to do a biopsy as a biopsy is almost always done because the doctor has a concern we have PCa. All the best. Len Smith <a href='https://prostatecancer.net' target='_blank'>ProstateCancer.net</a> Moderator" Best of luck! - Nina, <a href='https://prostatecancer.net' target='_blank'>ProstateCancer.net</a> Team
1. drjbear Member
 Thanks for all the good info. The reason for the biopsy was because I was getting a biopsy of my bladder and it was agood time to get the biopsy of the prostate.