I turned 50 on 9 January 2005 and saw my doctor for a physical on 14 January. I told her I had intermittent weak urine flow. She took a PSA test. On 15 January I received a call stating that my PSA was elevated and an appointment had been set with a Urologist for 17 January. I asked what elevated meant and was told it was 206.6 ng/ml. This did not mean anything to me and I was told normal was from 0-4.00 ng/ml.
I called my Dad as he had an enlarged prostate and he asked what my PSA was. I told him 206.6 ng/ml and he said that was nothing to worry about as his was 280.
When I saw the urologist the first words out of his mouth were..."you have prostate cancer". I couldn't believe it and told him my Dad's number was higher and he only had an enlarged prostate. The doctor said either my Dad was lying or had PC and didn't know it. He did a DRE, ultrasound and biopsy ( seven samples 80% cancerous with Gleason Score of 9(5+4)
I left the doctor's office and called my Dad again and asked him again what his PSA was. He then said 2.80 ng/ml (I was a little higher than him after all!) He didn't know PSA's went up that high and thought I meant 2.66 ng/ml.
A week later I had a Lupron shot and started taking Casodex daily. I had bone scans, CT and Proscint scan. PC was out of the capsule and into the abdominal lymph nodes, bone scan was clear.
On 10 February I went to Mayo Clinic for second opinion and their lab showed PSA had dropped down to 25 ng/ml.
PSA results fromMay 12, 2005 0.5 ng/ml.
On December 15th I went to my family doctor for medication testing and also had a PSA taken. The last 8 months my PSA had been at 0.05 ng/ml.That day the PSA was 71.8 ng/ml. I was then seen by my Urologist on December 19, 2005, a re-check of the PSA was done and it was 84.7ng/ml.
At that time I was taken off the Casodex and kept on the four months Lupron shot. I saw an oncologist and we started Chemotherapy with Taxotere 80mg on January 6 2006. The PSA that date was now up to 114.59 ng/ml.
The following are the dates and PSA levels up to now:
Janauary 13, 2006 - 261 ng/ml
On Janaury 20, 2006 I had a port put in for IV site.
Janaury 23, 2006 - 218 ng/ml
February 3, 2006 - 116.08 ng/ml
February 10, 2006 - 89.08 ng/ml
February 17, 2006 - 80.73 ng/ml
February 24, 2006 - 71.76 ng/ml
I am also receiving during chemo - aloxi .25 mg, decadron 20 mg, zometa 4mg, aranesp 400 mg.
Date PSA
3/3/06 60.97 weight lost 20 pounds to 377
3/10/0 51.56
3/17/06 38.5
3/24/06 38.7
3/31/06-4/17/06 was taken off taxotere due to some stumbling and home and problems driving car/
4/14/06 PSA up to 56.96
4/21/06 80.26
4/28/06 66.73
5/5/09 61.14
5/12/06 51.92
5/19/06 51.34
5/26/06 48.33
6/2/06 44.8
6/9/06 NOT TAKEN
6/16/06 64
6/23/06 66.24
6/30/06 85.33 8 pound weight loss
7/7/06 No CHEMO THIS WEEK d/c taxotere 2wks then shot and pills
7/21/06 START OF VINCRISTINE(IV), DEXAMETHASONE-2mg (2 times a day), cyclophosphamide 50 mg (4 times a day) PSA 115.27
7/28/06 78.4
8/3/06 100.49 ( shot only off oral med)
8/10/06 126
8/16/06 274.11 ( not shot or oral) weight down to 360.4 lbs
8/21/06 PSA 295
8/25/06 Start of 3rd IV treatment- Mitoantrone (novantrone)
9/1/06 PSA 223 weight now 344
9/23/06 285
9/30/06 two pints of blood given
10/04/06 weight now 334.7
10/6/06 Start of Chemo #4 GEMZAR PSA 286
10/13/06 PSA 286
10/14/06 2 pints blood
10/16/06 Went in hospital
10/17/06 4 pints blood
10/18/06 2 pints blood
10/19/06 PSA 306
10/20/06 2 units platelets,1 unit plasma
10/23/06 Home from hospital
10/30/06 PSA 276
11/10/06 PSA 394.09 weight 329 lbs
11/11/06 2 units blood
11/20/06 PSA 356.21 Admitted to hospital
11/26/06 PSA 457 Out of hospital
12/5/06 429 2 units of blood
12/12/06 No chemo 2 units blood
12/14/06 PSA 322.73 CHemo
12/21/06 No Chemo 2 units blood
12/27/06 PSA 379 Admitted to hosp 2 units blood
12/29/06 Chemo started
12/30/06 Out of hospital
1/6/07 2 units bloood, wight 341 lbs
1/13/07 PSA 363 2 units blood
1/19/07 PSA 405.64 2 units blood
1/26/07 PSA 410.53
2/2/07 PSA 501
2/4/07 2 units blood, weight 318 lbs
2/7/07 START OF KETOCONAZOLE(2 3XDAY, HYDROCORTIZONE (1.5 AM /.5 NIGHT)
2/16/07 PSA 858.92
2/18/07 2 units blood
3/5/07 645 2 units blood
3/23/07 666.4 weight 325 lbs
4/5/07 681 2 units blood
4/06/07 739 2 units blood wt 304 lbs
d/c Ketoconazole and hydrocortizone **
START DEXAMETHAXONE 40, (5 FOR 4 DAYS AND OFF FOR 4DAYS)
4/25/07 PSA 438 2 units blood, weight 279.6
6/8/07 PSA 521 weight 286.6
7/3/07 2 units blood
7/18/07 PSA 608.02
With the loss of blood after many tests it was believed that the GEMZAR had effected the bone marrow. Nothing was ever really confirmed on this. When hemoglobin dropped between 9-10 would get units of blood. Platelet counts running between 53 and 74.
When I sent a reminder to Kevin for an update in August 2008, it bounced. I feared that meant that he was unable to beat the disease in the end and sadly that proved to be correct. Kevin passed away in September 2007. This is the notice in The Hawk Eye:
Kevin T. Reeder, 52, of Des Moines, died Saturday, Sept. 29, 2007, at Iowa Methodist Medical Center after a lengthy battle with prostate cancer.
Born Jan. 9, 1955, in Fort Madison, he was the son of George and Erma Stout Reeder. On June 7, 1975, he married Lisa Slicker.
Mr. Reeder owned and operated a taxi cab and over the years also worked in security and investigations. He co-owned an insurance fraud firm and he drove a school bus for the Urbandale School District.
He grew up in Fort Madison. He was a 1973 graduate of Fort Madison High School and a graduate of Western Illinois University. He was an Eagle Scout. He enjoyed singing and was active in theater organizations. He was also active in his church's choir until the advancement of his illness.
Survivors include his wife; two daughters, Jennifer Reeder and Jillian Reeder, both of Des Moines; his parents of Fort Madison; one brother, Kirk Reeder of Ankeny; two sisters, Kim Stoudenmire of Wesley Chapel, Fla., and Krista Robak of Spokane, Wash.; one niece and two nephews.
He was preceded in death by his grandparents.
