I had a steadily climbing PSA. Every year, it was a few tenths higher. No doctor had told me to abstain from sex or bicycle riding for at least for days before getting a PSA test because jostling the prostate gives false high readings. Well, a friend told me that fact and I had been heeding his advice, but the last two PSA tests in 2009 were 5.8 and my regular doctor sent me to a urologist for biopsy. I waited 13 days for the results. No one is the same after a doctor points and says "You have cancer." Like many, I became isolated and began to worry. My Urologist wanted to schedule me for radioactive seed implants immediately, but he seemed in too big of a hurry. Sort of like a used car salesman. So, I told him I'd get back to him. I sought a second opinion from the Dean of Urology at the UofIowa Hospitals. He said I had a very small amount of cancer, but he could remove my prostate and get it all. Huh? Sounded like taking a shotgun after a mosquito. Hmmm, could these doctors just be recommending the treatment that they do and not what was best for me? (Yes!)
In researching the internet, I found Yananow, which led me to proton radiation for prostate cancer. This seemed the best treatment, with less complications. I called University of Florida Proton Institute and was there the following week for a two day evaluation. At the end, they told me that they would treat me and set two gold markers in my prostate to locate it during treatment. I was elated! I would be getting the latest treatment, with a 96% success rate. And no side effects. In November 2009, I signed up for a special trial of 27 treatments of medium dose proton. It was five consecutive days of radiation, then the weekend off, then five days of treatment, etc. It worked! My PSA dropped to 4.2 while I was there, then dropped to 2.1 in six months. I have hovered around 1.0 for a couple of years because I'm still sexually active. But last year, my PSA settled Nadir 1.0
Update- I'm now in my 12th year of prostate cancer remission and my PSA has stayed around 1.0. I have never had any side effects at all and counsel new Prostate cancer victims at the local level. I have seen some poor guys subjected to some real quackery and butchery at the hands of uneducated doctors. I have grown to despise Urologists in general for their dishonesty. Everyone should do their research and decide for themselves what treatment to take. I took Proton, as have many that I have counseled. It works!
Update- Well, I'm now over 14 years cancer free. At 71 1/2 years old, I still have no side efffects from the proton treatments. Everything still works as it should and I'm a happy guy. I still counsel guys in my area that are freshly diagnosed with prostate cancer. Most of them choose proton therapy, since there are new treatment protocols and there are three proton treatment centers within a couple of hours of here. I am happy to have saved so many guys from the barbaric and fraudulent treatments inflicted by local urologists. My main focus now is to broadcast the truth of the value and proper preparation for annual PSA testing so that men can get clear results and know what their options are. The urology profession is rife with lying doctors and we need to expose their racketeering.
Gary's e-mail address is: gary.smith.w AT gmail.com (replace "AT" with "@")
