YANA - YOU ARE NOT ALONE NOW

PROSTATE CANCER SUPPORT SITE

BRONZE

Ken K and Terri live in New Jersey, USA. He was 50 when he was diagnosed on March 2, 2010. His initial PSA was 4.2 ng/ml, his Gleason Score was 3+3=6 and he was staged T1c. His choice of treatment was Robotic-asst laparoscopic prostatectomy. Here is his story.

The PSA from my annual physical was 4.2 in January, 2010, up from 2.5 in 2007. Based on this, my family doctor recommended I be seen by a urologist, who subsequently recommended a biopsy. By the time it was performed in February, the PSA had dropped to 3.2. The urologist indicated there was only a 20-25% likelihood of a positive biopsy result. Nevertheless, it showed one malignant core of twelve. The malignant core was 30% coverage with Gleason 3+3. (This must be akin to feeling "almost pregnant"!) Nuclear bone and CT scans were clean, although the latter indicated an enlarged prostate. Several DREs (Digital Rectal Examination) and ultrasounds were clean. I exhibited no symptoms.

The first and second opinion urologists were consistent in stating that I was a candidate for all treatment options but both recommended radical prostatectomy. The chair of Hackensack University Medical Center's Urology Dept (excellent surgeon, department and facility!) performed robotic-assisted laparoscopic surgery on May 12, 2010.

The post-surgical biopsy indicated that all cancer was organ-confined (clean margins). Seminal vesicles, vas deferens and four lymph nodes were all clean. The staging was upgraded to T2a based on a post-surgical Gleason score of 3+4. [The Gleason Score does not alter the staging, which is defined by the volume of tumour. Essentially a pathological staging of T2a is the same as a clinical staging of T1c.] The Han table indicates a 12% recurrence likelihood in ten years. The prostate nomogram for post-RP on the website of Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in NYC indicates a 96% progression-free probability after ten years. (Not quite sure why there is a difference between them.) [because they are using different data] The surgeon explicitly stated I had a less than 5% likelihood of recurrence after ten years, so I'll go with that. The first post-surgical PSA is scheduled for mid June.

I feel like I dodged a bullet! Gonna be real cautious about meat, especially overcooked or charbroiled (reference the Prostate Cancer Foundation's guide titled Nutrition, Exercise and Prostate Cancer).

UPDATED

December 2010

 

 

September 2010: PSA is undetectable. Testing every four months.

Ken's e-mail address is: bergendude@gmail.com