Prostate Cancer

[alf corbyn]

hi john (mr strange). very sorry to hear of your problems and thank you very much for sharing them with all on site. it has certainly opened my eyes.as others have remarked, if you don't insist on checkups etc, by doctors then anything could happen. i'm glad you are ok, but i'm very sorry about your scan and when they scanned your brain they found nothing in it haha. alf

[Neville Roberts]

I had a radical prostatectomy 15 years ago , most likely the old method as I have 13 inch scar from belly button to my crotch ,the doc said it was just a routine operation , I said to him maybe for you . after the op I got out in 3 days and went back to the doc for an evaluation he said I think Iwill send you for some radiation treatment .after what the radiologist told me what too expect ,scaring of the bowel and maybe incontinence . went back too the doc and asked him what is the chance of the cancer coming back he said %10 .I told him I will take that chance rather than go 2 years of radiology treatment .and I am looking at my 75 in may .some of the Yank docs will give you treatment that cost a fortune if they find out that you insurance i pays up fast .its all about the $$$$$$ here in the States . in facy I saw the oeration on TV some time before mine ,and it was pretty gory .

[Lou Barron]

Hi John you sure have had a rough spell but you have not lost your sense of humour keepit up and never give in all the best for the future

[happy daze john in oz]

Lads, many thanks to you all for your kind words. It has been the encouragement of family anf friends such as you that has greatly assisted me in overcoming this.
Health has for many of us been something we never considered to be a problem, then something like this comes up. It gives you a new perspective on life, but it also shows that problems can be fixed, just get over the fear of seeing your GP and you will be OK.

[Tony Morcom]

John, it is your courage and thoughtfulness in sharing your story that inspired me to create this new sub~forum called "Aches and Pains". Hopefully others will be encouraged by your story and maybe share theirs as well. One thing is certain and that's none of us are getting any younger and I guess most of us have the fear of something nasty creeping up on us but stories like yours may just help to alleviate those fears and persuade members to do the right thing if and when symptoms arise.

[Charlie Hannah]

John sorry to hear your having a few problems,but happy that you are being well cared for and getting on with it.You seem to have it all under control, this is very good ,hope you recover rapidly and and get well again soon! All the very best of health in the futer. All good wishes for speedy recovery!
Interesting the part about the broken bone John,i have been having the same type problem i had these pains around the knee,and went to my local Doc, i had three x-rays over a period of time ,one cat scan and a full body bone density test,plus a number of blood test, which the Specialist informed me cleared me of any cancers,. The Specialist
then dignosed me has having Inflamed Bursitis,i had been having lots of problems with Back and hips as well as the knee trouble,and the back and hips play up quite a bit at times,this was caused by accident at sea twenty three years ago.Getting back to the broken knee,the local Doc found this after sending me for the third x-ray,it showed a breack in the Fibuler bone in left knee.I have been walking around with a gammy leg for nine months.So all these Bone scans two of the x-rays and a fukll scan showed nothing only for the local doc i would never have known about the bone,its taken a hell of a long time to mend and is causing heaps of problems.Local Doc says nothing can be done just have to wait for it to heal! That was tree weeks ago told me to see him again in six weeks thats the 4th of April so i will probably have another x-ray then and hopefully good news.Bit long winded but thought it interesting you mentioning same type injury not knowing about it.
Once again John Good luck to you and your quick recovery.

[Ivan Cloherty]

Just returned from my holiday and trying to catch up. First John hope everything is going okay and you are on the mend, also kong and Alf and any others I have not caught up with yet.

It was the title that got my attention 'Off Colour' so on a lighter note. had an accident on first day of 30 day holiday, being polite (as mother always told me to be!) stepped aside to let a lady pass and walked straight into a broken lounger which pierced my leg, thought nothing of it (tough seaman!) until it turned septic so off to hospital get it seen to, dressings and antibiotics cleared it up, then it turned septic again so back to hospital and more antibiotics, but back home and still not clear BUT the funny part is that these latter antib's turned me bright red and made my lips swell (Al Jolson had nothing on me), so if things do not improve by May, those going to Liverpool will easily recognise me, either because 1, I will still be bright red,(and I do mean bright red) or 2 all traffic will have come to a stop in my vicinity.

Had eleven visits to hospital and must say the E11 European Health Card worked a treat

As well as being red, it is painfull and embarassing, was hoping to go to doctor as thought back in UK it would be raining and have been told to keep out of any sunlight, guess what, Torquay is bathed in sunlight and bright blue sky

I'm sure you guys will come up with some good one liners on the situation to cheer me up

Nice to be back Rgds to all

[Captain Kong]

Was it the Yanks who said,"Better Dead Than Red" or was it he other way round.?
Get well soon Ivan
.
What was the name of the Anti Biotic?? Sometimes they have some wierd effects, some do not suit some people and some can even have very dangerous effects.
.
I had one when I broke my ribs many years ago and I swelled up like a balloon from the top of my head to my feet,
my face was just a ball, I could not get my shoes on.
I went to the hospital and the Nurse just said "you are stupid , you have been lying in the sun too long." It took a while to convince her I had had a reaction to an Antibiotic.
Cheers
Brian.
.

[Richard Quartermaine]

With thick lips it must be difficult to touquay.

And - "Honey, you got lips like pedals". "Sigh, itsy-bitsy little petals". "Clears throat. No honey, bicycle pedals"

Get well soon Ivan.

Richard

[Roger Dyer]

Hi John (Happy Daze),

I wondered where you'd got to - you old b--t--d. Mate, I feel sure you will come through your present set-back with flying colours, knowing you possess that most important ingredient of any recovery to good health - a sense of humour. As others have already done, I would like to offer my thanks to you for starting this thread. With the added input of the other lads, it serves as a timely medical reminder to all our members. As a fellow cancer sufferer like yourself and Richard, I feel qualified to add my own two-bobsworth, so for those of you who haven't already done so (especially the over 50's) please give it serious thought, it could save a life - your own !

For me, it started back in 2006. I began to notice that if I was having a few drinks with friends I seemed to spend half the evening going to the toilet. After going to bed for the night my sleep would be interrupted by the need to visit the bathroom, whereupon I'd stand there waiting for something to happen...trickle, trickle, trickle. These nocturnal interludes became more frequent, so much so that it wasn't funny anymore. I'd get up in the morning feeling exhausted. Finally, with a reluctance common to most men of my acquaintance, I visited my local doctor. After blood tests confirmed I had a prostate problem he arranged for me to see a urologist. My dear wife, bless her, insisted on coming with me, but I managed to persuade her to stay in the waiting-room. In a matter of fact tone, the urologist explained to me that the blood tests showed I had a PSA reading of 4.7 which, to me, meant very little. This was followed by the proclamation that I had prostate cancer which, to me, meant a great deal more. He continued speaking about other things, but I felt numb and could only sit there my mind spinning. Finally, he told me to make an appointment with his receptionist for a biopsy, then shaking my hand he ushered me out the door.

As I emerged from the surgery I saw my wife sitting there. Our eyes met and a look of concern spread across her face (she told me later I looked as if I'd seen a ghost - I think I had - my own). I was unable to say anything until I'd made another appointment with the receptionist and we were alone outside in the street. I broke the news as gently as I could and she just stood there, tears welling in her eyes, then we stood holding one another, both, seemingly, in a state of shock. Selfishly, my first thoughts were 'Why me?' but this was quickly followed by a feeling of great sadness for my wife and family. I had parked our car just five minutes from the surgery, but that day, somehow, it took me two-cigarettes to walk the distance. I felt strange, disconnected, as if I had suddenly entered an unfamiliar world.

As requested, I returned to the urologist a day or two later and underwent a biopsy which I was to find particularly painful. The doctor left the room whilst his male nurse daubed a gel-like substance into my nether regions with the assured practice of a motor mechanic servicing a car. He explained that I would experience a numbing sensation as the anaesthetic gel took effect. The doctor returned and set-up his box of tricks in my rear end. It came with it's own little T.V. Screen, but I wasn't that interested, I had a good idea what the next programme was all about. The doctor kindly explained that he needed to take a number of tissue specimens from my prostate. I would hear a 'click' he said and shortly thereafter I might feel what seems like a small dart hitting my prostate. There might be a little discomfort he added, but generally the gel does it's job and there's nothing much to worry about. When he also asked if I would like to be forewarned just before he pulled the trigger on his little spring-loaded gizmo, the alarm bells started to ring, but I took him up on his offer. "Right here we go"...Click, Pause, 'YOW'....Jeez.... and so it continued (to my credit I had enough fortitude to keep all the 'Yow's to myself ). He took seven specimens which was quite enough, I thought. He then sat me down and explained the various methods of treatment available to prostate cancer
patients, chemotherapy, radiotherapy and a choice of surgical procedures. He suggested that because of my age and my comparatively low PSA reading 'Watchful Waiting' might be appropriate, however, he stressed that the decision was mine to make. 'Watchful Waiting', as the name suggests, means they do nothing other than monitor ones condition, apart from blood tests taken every three months and a yearly biopsy. That didn't sound so bad, so that's what I opted for.

I noticed that after three or four weeks, the feeling of doom and gloom that had overwhelmed me so, began to disperse and soon I was able to put most of it to the back of my mind. Life returned to a degree of normalcy. During the first year my PSA reading actually receded to 4.2 but then rose again, remaining in the region of 4.7 - 4.9. At the end of the first year I endured another biopsy which, like the first, was equally painful. The urologist explained that 10% of men experience no pain when undergoing a biopsy, like 'falling off a log' (his words, not mine), 80% feel a little discomfort and the other 10% (including me) feel quite a lot of pain. He then went on to say that henceforth he wanted me to have a biopsy every six months. B-gg-r that, I thought and told my local doctor of my concerns. He arranged for me to seek a second opinion from another urologist, Dr.Ferguson, and I was so very glad he did. Dr.Ferguson was sympathetic to my concerns and agreed that in my case a biopsy every six months was unnecessary. Greatly relieved, I could have kissed him, but refrained from doing so.

I remained on 'Watchful Waiting' for another year until a blood test showed a sudden rise in my PSA reading (up to 5.9). Dr.Ferguson explained that he would need to take a biopsy, but not to concern myself too much because he used a different method of anaesthetic to the one adopted by my previous urologist. Rather than just use the gel, with a very fine needle he was able to anaesthetise that area so that during the biopsy I felt no pain whatsoever....'like falling off a log'.

My reason for dwelling on biopsies is not to alarm, but rather to advise members that those who, like myself, may have a low pain threshold, particularly in that part of the body, can be assured that the experience need not be wholly traumatic.

Now, the time had come for me to make a decision and I was given an easy-to-read book to help me make up my mind. In the end I opted for radiotherapy. As John rightly points out in his initial post on this thread, radiotherapy can have unwelcome side-effects for some patients, but it seemed to me that the other treatments on offer also had certain risks. I was mindful that should the radiotherapy prove ineffectual, I would not be able to have surgery afterwards. My only option in those circumstances would be chemotherapy. I think a degree of luck comes into the equation, but no matter, unlike most other medical conditions, the prostate cancer patient must make his own decision regarding final treatment. For some, making such a choice can be difficult, but don't be frightened to discuss it with your own doctor.

Anyway, on the 11th August, 2009, at the Nepean Cancer Clinic I commenced a course of radiotherapy that was to last until the 8th October, 2009. This meant that for more than seven weeks I would be required to attend the Cancer Clinic each week-day where for about five minutes each day I would be subjected to radiotherapy. It was totally painless, even if a somewhat monotonous experience. The radiologists, apart from Truc (a likeable lad of Vietnamese descent), were mostly young women. All were wonderfully professional and friendly and patients and staff alike were on first name terms. Before they can proceed with therapy for prostate cancer patients, it is necessary for each patient to be tattooed. This is carried out by a precision machine. A black dot is placed on each side of the patients body, just below the hips. A third dot is placed about two inches below the belly-button, whilst a fourth and final dot is situated further down amongst the pubic hair. These dots are there to enable the radiologists to correctly align their machine to avoid unnecessary damage to healthy tissue. The tattooed 'dots', although miniscule, are there to stay, a lasting memory to a surreal episode in ones life. You will, perhaps, imagine the joy of Y.T. when, during the course of my first dose of radiotherapy, I was required to lay flat on my back on the machine, enjoying the pleasurable experience of having two pretty young radiologists with 'butterfly fingers' ruffle my 'feathers', so to speak, in their quest to find the tattooed dot that they knew was there - somewhere. It was hilarious and became part of a daily ritual. I got used to it and bravely soldiered on.

I am happy to report that I came through the experience unscathed. They say that once you have cancer you are never totally free of it, however, when I had my last blood test about six months ago, my PSA reading was .3 ...I can live with that.

Like John and the others, if, as I hope, the telling of my own experience will motivate any of you into having a check-up, then the contents of this thread will have served a worthy purpose. There's nothing to fear except fear itself (whoever coined that phrase knew a thing or two). Remember, mates, cancer and other serious conditions don't have to be a death sentence if treated in time. Worse things happen at sea!

..........................Roger.