My story begins when I was 32 years old. I was on a bike ride and began to experience terrible pain in the scrotum. I went to my GP and was then referred to a urologist who diagnosed prostatitis. This condition became chronic with occasional nasty flare-ups. I eventually began monitoring my PSA at age 40, well before the recommended age, simply because of all of the problems I had experienced. This created a baseline that became useful later on.
Interestingly, the events that led to diagnosis were symptom free. I was 48 and had gone for my yearly checkup with my GP and had my blood drawn. When the results came back, I was told over the phone that everything was good. I later developed a sense that something just wasn't right. I called my doctor's office and asked for the PSA number. I was told it was 3.9, but not to worry...anything below 4.0 is O.K. My PSA the year before was 1.6, so I called my urologist and set up an appointment.
After subsequent tests and a round of Cipro, the urologist recommended a biopsy. My PSA was now 4.2. The biopsy was painful, but manageable. When the results came back, I had prepared my mind for the word "cancer." I was told that it was a Gleason 6 cancer, involving 3 of 12 cores, each over 30% involvement. My urologist was methodical and broke down all of my options and told me that I had time to do some research and make a decision about treatment. He said, however, that I would need to treat it because of my age and the volume of cancer.
I read Dr. Patrick Walsh's fine book "Guide to Surviving Prostate Cancer" and joined a couple of fine Internet forums on the topic. I understood that Gleason 6 is low risk, but that 30% of men are upgraded after surgery. I have a wife and young children and, despite the fear of lasting side effects, I chose surgery over radiation and other less common treatments. I wanted to know for certain and the post-surgery pathology will provide that knowledge. My urologist performed the surgery in September of 2016 and I had supreme confidence in his ability and concern for my health. He specializes in the open surgical method and it went very well, other than a little bit of excessive bleeding.
Recovery wasn't too bad, but the catheter was a terrible nuisance. I was walking 6 miles in my neighborhood within two weeks of the surgery and back to work shortly after. As it turns out the tumor was on both sides of the prostate and it was Gleason 7. Final staging was pT2c, so I am one of those 30% who are upgraded to a higher Gleason score. Ultimately, I am glad that I chose to have the prostate removed. I have some very minimal side effects now over two years later, but I knew might be the case and I wouldn't do anything any different if I could.
Looking back now, I'm glad I had the run-in with Prostatitis. I know lots of men my age who have never had a prostate issue or a PSA test and don't even know what their prostate is. Had I been one of these men unaffected by prostate problems, I may not have caught my cancer as early as I did. My advice to any man is to get an annual PSA, especially if you are 50 and older. PSA is not a test for cancer, but it is a barometer of your overall prostate health and it may help you catch something that is treatable, even curable, in its early stages.
It has been three and a half years since my diagnosis and life has pretty much returned to normal. Of course, there is some anxiety every time I have a PSA check but that is to be expected I guess. I have become more aware of my health, but I am very grateful that this was caught early. I offer encouragement to those who are newly diagnosed and pray for those dealing with much tougher cases than mine.
It has now been 7.5 years since my diagnosis and subsequent radical prostatectomy. I just had my PSA done and am pleased to report that I'm still undetectable. Even though I feel pretty confident having my blood drawn each year, there is always a bit of anxiety in waiting for the lab results to be reported. I still have some minor ED issues, but life is about as normal as I could hope for. I've had two close acquaintances diagnosed with PCa in this past year, one with a much more advanced case than what I had. Both seem to be responding well to treatment. Happy New Year and Best Wishes to all my brothers out there battling this thing. I hope and pray that you find wellness, happines, and peace.
Darrell's e-mail address is: drbbt690 AT gmail.com (replace "AT" with "@")
