My Dilemma
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In December, 2004, after years of BPH, and medication, a second biopsy revealed cancer of the prostate. I'm a RAZORBACK, born and raised in Little Rock, having spent the greater part of my life there. The first biopsy was done about 2000, in Little Rock, and was negative, although my PSA was up to ten. Watchful waiting was the name of the game, and after relocating to Mississippi, my problems with nighttime pee trips and urgencies, plus a two point jump in the PSA, dictated a second biopsy.
My Gleason was 3+4 and my prostate was the size of a baseball, about 150 grams. A normal prostate is about 20 grams, about like a walnut. My chosen uroligist in Tupelo wanted me to be treated locally with the standard procedure of months of hormone ablation shots to remove all traces of testosterone, and to shrink the gland, and then take photon-beam radiation treatments to kill the cancer.
I'm 72, right? I'm already an avid proponent of Viagra, and this guy wants me to give up not only my prostate, but my balls also. That started the internet research that lead to discovering the Doctor's dilemma.
The Doctor
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Because I thoroughly researched the internet for my treatment options for prostate cancer, and declined to heed the advice of my Urologist who advised me to follow the 'tried and true' method of taking hormone ablation treatments and photon radiation, thus rendering me impotent, and instead I took NO hormone ablation treatments and took PROton radiation treatments at Loma Linda Hospital in CA, rather than the photon beam radiation method , thus leaving my testicles functioning and my love-life near normal, my Doctor has been less than overjoyed to see me.
My last visit, he sent a female nurse to examine my sex organs and give a digital exam of my remaining prostate, which apparently has shrunken because of the radiation. This has reduced the pressure on my urethra and I have enjoyed a respectable stream without the need to get out of bed 2 or 3 times at night. In short, I am really doing wonderful, despite the ailments I have endured.
Do Your Homework
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Prostate cancer is usually a slow growing problem, and most people my age pass on before cancer gets them. Gleason 7 is the middle-of-the-line aggressiveness, and my fortunate good health indicated I would be wise to get treatment. After months of studying options, the only place in the US that agreed to treat my oversize prostate without the hormone ablation shots was Loma Linda Hospital in Loma Linda, CA., subject to a physical consultation. They said the preliminary data indicated it might be possible to treat the cancer with proton-beam, not photon-beam, radiation, which delivers a more precise treatment field, while sparing the rectum, bladder, etc.
Loma Linda is currently one of three or four centers in the US using proton-beam treatment, and had been treating prostate cancer since 1991. The major problem was the time required to complete 44 daily treatments, excluding weekends.
The round-trip flight to Loma Linda was arranged through Southwest Airlines Patients Assistance Program, with no cost to us, and MediPak would cover the medical costs. The consultation was productive, and my attending Physician, Dr. Jabola, affirmed that the treatment would consist of proton beam radiation only, with NO hormone ablation treatments affecting my testicles.
The Fruitful Option
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The weather in southern California was great- cool nights and warm sunny days. The treatments were of short duration, with very few side effects, the people were friendly and supportive, and the entire stay turned into a site-seeing vacation.
California is not inexpensive, and the traffic is horrendous, but we learned to avoid the major traffic hazards, and took advantage of pot luck dinners, weekly meetings offering sandwiches, and typical cost-saving measures. We could have found cheaper accommodations, but the amenities where we stayed were well worth the cost.
We are in the process of follow-up tests and results. I have been feeling very good, with very few side effects. My first PSA , four months after treatment, was slightly elevated but this is not surprising considering the size of the prostate and the years of elevated PSA levels before finding the cancer and starting treatment. The last PSA registered a whopping 0.92. So far, so good, and I fully expect things to stay that way.
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