YANA - YOU ARE NOT ALONE NOW

PROSTATE CANCER SUPPORT SITE

BRONZE

Wayne Wayne lives in North Carolina, USA. He was 48 when he was diagnosed on February 15, 2008. His initial PSA was 3.0 ng/ml, his Gleason Score was 6 and although he does not state his staging, it is clear from his narrative that he was staged T1c. His choice of treatment was Da Vinci surgery. Here is his story.


I first began to notice some issues with having to get up very often at night to urinate. After about three weeks of this I began to get concerned. Prostate cancer runs in my family ( father and two uncles).

I saw my general medical doctor and had PSA and DRE (Digital Rectal Examination). Rectal exam was ok but PSA was elevated (3.1), this was in November 2007. Had PSA done again 1st week of January and it was still elevated (3.2). Doctor suggested I see a urologist just to be sure.

My third PSA was done late in January and was still above 3.0 ( original baseline at 40 was 1.7). Another rectal exam etc. My urologist suggested a biopsy ( he claimed his positive rate was close to 50% on suggested biopsies) so off I go for the biopsy. I have to say that it hurt like hell for just a bit.

Results came back on February 15. To say I was shocked would be lying because of my family history, but none the less I was still frightened. Biopsy was 12 needle sticks. Only one showed any cancer cells and only 5% of that sample showed positive

I have to say that my urologist (Dr Aubrey Evans of Winston-Salem) was very thorough in explaining my options. He insisted that I see a radiation oncologist so I would have another viewpoint on treatment. I about busted a gut when he gave me the name of the radiation oncologist (it was my ex-sister-in-law ). When he asked if I wanted to see someone else I told him I was now in a place where pride did not exist anymore and if he thought she was the best then set up the appointment.

Met with my ex-sister-in-law and she flat out told me I did not want to do radiation. She explained that radiation was a one shot , no do overs , procedure and that if the cancer recurred that the only option would be surgery with little to no hope of sparing nerves.

Surgery scheduled for April 14, so I had some time to get prepared and to read up on what comes after. Everything I read was right and wrong. Timelines were mainly the misses. Everything that I read would happen pretty much happened. Instead of letting the seven days with the catheter slow me down I was back at my weekly poker game on Friday with bag in tow after having surgery on Monday. My buddies thought it was hysterical when I told them I could play all night and not have to get up to pee.

Back to work at a reasonable pace at the end of 3 weeks (don't push it if you don't have to ). My 30 day PSA came back at .01 ( good news ). My 90 PSA came back at .00 ( more good news ).

Started doing the vacuum pump routine everyday. I was less than impressed with the immediate results . Somewhere around the 1st week of August it finally had enough to it to take a road test. It was interesting to say the least.

Moving on to the Fall things continued to progress. Tried all the meds and found that Levitra worked the best for me. 6 month PSA came back .00 (even better news ).

I have to say that Christmas morning this year may have been one of the best since I was a small child. After having planned to have a Christmas Eve rendezvous with the wife things didn't work out. So here I am pumped full of "L" and no way to take advantage. To my total surprise I awoke on Christmas morning with a full blown "woodie". Of course as soon as I went to the bathroom it was gone faster that Santa and his reindeer, but I had woken up with something I figured never to have again.

Of all the things I have had to deal with I have to say the minor incontinence has been the biggest pain. Basically dry at night and during the day except when trying to lift something from a squat. You have to make sure to remember to do a Kegel before you start your lift. Back to playing golf on a regular basis with little or no incontinence. If you are an active person and want to remain so there is a product out there that makes you feel a little more comfortable. It is called Acti-Cuff. Order some and follow directions and you won't regret it.

Ladies , if you are reading this pay attention !!!!!!!!! Once your husband / significant other has had the surgery and is on the road to recovery YOU ARE THE BEST PHYSICAL THERAPIST IN TOWN. Take time everyday to be the PHYSICAL THERAPIST (even 5 minutes) and you will have the man wrapped around your finger forever. Unfortunately mine did not take this approach and told me yesterday she wants to move on.

Hope the door doesn't hit her on the way out. I guess its time to think about taking the show on the road. I know I will have to find the right person but that may be just the thing.

Remember prostate cancer can kill you but only you can kill your soul. Don't hesitate to talk to other prostate cancer survivors, they can and will help with a smile and a laugh at times. Forget you ever had any pride and concentrate on getting better.

I want to especially thank my urologist Dr Aubrey Evans of Winston-Salem for taking the time to talk to ME. He did not do the DR TWO STEP a single time even when he knew he had patients waiting. And remember when you are sitting in the waiting room waiting for a follow up visit that if the doctor is running late that he could be delivering the same message that we got to another unfortunate soul.

 

UPDATED

September 2010

 

 

Last checkup was September 9, 2010 and PSA is still the big "0" . Hooray !!!

Things are going really well for me. Still can't get an erection without medication but I have to say that the 5mg Cialis daily has had amazing benefits. Wife left me less than a year after my surgery ( not related to sexual issues ). Have since met a really nice lady that has more than once questioned the ex's sanity in letting me get away. She is a few years older but still extremely sexually interested and active. She has more than once commented on the benefits of ED medication and wants to send my surgeon a birthday and Christmas present herself lol.

I have corresponded with several gents that have found themselves in the "prostate cancer boat" with the rest of us. It has been a very rewarding experience. I have even spoken with several wives/significant others, regarding their partners challenges and what their partners really needed from them. When I told one wife that she had to become her husband's physical therapist she had no idea why. Once I explained that her husband was going to question his masculinity for awhile and that she was the most important person in helping to restore that confidence she seemed to understand. Later I spoke with her again and she said that with out me explaining the graphic details to her that she would probably have never taken an as active approach as she did . She said that the overall physical outcome finally worked itself out but that the most important thing that happened was that she and her husband were closer emotionally and to top it off were more sexually active than they had been for the previous 10 years. I wish there was a way that more women would open their minds and understand that when a man no longer has spontaneous erections that the mental effect is so far reaching that it can effect a multitude of things. They are the "key" to making things better immediately and into the future as well.

Hope things are going well for you. If there is someone that you know that could benefit from talking with someone that has "been there, done that, got the t-shirt" please feel free to have them contact me. They can call me at 336-240-4583 . The fight with prostate cancer has certainly given me a different viewpoint on life and I try and share that as often as I can.

Regards Wayne .


Wayne's e-mail address is: schedulermpm@aol.com - he says he is a bit lax in checking his mail on this address, so you may like to call him if you don't get a response from him.