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Richard Bercuson and L live in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada . He was 53 when he was diagnosed July 2005. His initial PSA was 6.06 ng/ml, his Gleason Score was 6 and he was staged T2a . His choice of treatment was radical prostatectomy. Here is his story.

Much of what I experienced is described in peculiar and irreverent detail in my book "Assume the position: one guy's journey through prostate cancer." It's available through my website (all proceeds go to Prostate Cancer Association Ottawa).

The first reaction upon hearing you have cancer is, "Egad." This is followed by a string of much worse words. But it's not like my car's fuel pump sprung a leak and can be easily repaired. I've learned medicine is an inexact science, that I had to place my complete trust in perfect strangers whom I considered nerds while I was out playing road hockey. Now these people were going to stick their mitts in my gut to save me.

I survived the surgery and was lucky - no further treatments and minimal long term side effects. I don't know if that's the norm; all I know is that had my family doctor not had my PSA tracked for a few years, this might not have been discovered. I could be dead. Or worse.

Prostate cancer, I've also discovered, can be treated if men would learn to emote rather than be remote. I understand that these days it's acceptable for men to tear up. Finally. But I guess it depends a lot on the answer to this question: what's your life worth to you or anyone else?

 

UPDATED

August 2010

 

 

Little of note has happened since the last update. My PSA is now being checked annually but I continue to earn (get? be rewarded with?) what the doctor calls an undetectable PSA. Here in Ottawa, Canada, the original benchmark was using numbers. But then it was decided to just call it undetectable if the PSA was so tiny as to be of no consequence. Frankly, any rogue cancer cell is enough for me to consider it a consequence, but that's not what the medical people think. It may very well rear its Gorgon head in 20 years, but what the heck, something will if it doesn't.

I try to maintain a healthy lifestyle - I am a long distance runner and ice hockey coach/instructor. I still have a very strong affinity to potato chips. My guess is that won't affect the PSA. Next PSA check is Feb, 2011, at which point another undetectable score would sort of make me "cured," like the ham I am. Life continues to be a joy, no matter what.

 

UPDATED

January 2012

 

Yesterday (Jan. 19 at 8 am) was the 6th anniversary of my prostatectomy. I go for my next PSA test in a week. Sadly, we have no control over test results and it'll mean another week or so of anxiety before I meet with my urologist in Feb. I can be hopeful or I can be scared. I can be anxious or I can be blase. [PSA Anxiety was mentioned in the January 2012 Yana E-Letter ]

I choose to worry about other things instead, such as what's the next good movie I'd like to see, or how I can get my ice hockey team to improve its performance. "Ain't no sense worryin' 'bout things you can't control, cause if you can't control em, ain't no sense worryin," according to a former pro baseball player. Wisdom personified.

I am healthy. Well, not entirely. I have a nagging hamstring injury (I'm a marathon runner) which is impeding my training regime right now. But this is likely unrelated to a six year old prostate cancer issue.

Today, I continue to rely a bit on pharmaceuticals to deal with erectile dysfunction. Such is life. I don't much like it but they also help with the libido. I tinker with three types and some are more effective in different doses than others. None has made me go blind.

I wear dark underwear and black running shorts (except in Canadian winters where people in shorts are deemed crazy) because there's still a tendency for drippage under exertion such as when running or skating. It's not a lot and a minor annoyance.

I've been lucky compared with friends in the local association, Prostate Cancer Canada Network Ottawa. I have my health , my energy, and a positive attitude. I'm not sure which led to which, however it doesn't much matter. Life's grand, even minus a prostate.

Regards, Richard .

Richard's e-mail address is: assumetheposition@richardbercuson.ca