THERE WAS NO RESPONSE TO AN UPDATE REMINDER IN 2016 SO THERE IS NO UPDATE.

3/2008 During life insurance exam, PSA was 4.2, physical exam 12 months before showed 2.4

4/2008 1st biopsy revealed 1 'suspicious' sample

6/2008 2nd biopsy revealed 1 'suspicious' sample

11/2008 3rd biopsy revealed one confirmed prostate cancer sample

Spent a couple of months talking to guys who've had prostate cancer and who'd chosen different treatments (open surgery, seeds, radiation and robotic) options. Met with doctors/clinics who provided various treatment options. Elected to go with robotic surgery.

4/2009 had surgery. Went OK. Had more bleeding than most; my catheter clogged up a couple of times and had to rush to the ER to get it flushed out. That was a problem, but worked through it. When you have a catheter clog up and work through the incredible pain of being stopped up, you tend to really watch the line to make sure it's always doing that consistent drip, drip, drip into the bag. Got through that OK.

Most everything else has been quite good. ED not a problem, in fact sex life is really good, but different.

11/2013 I was playing golf and developed a pain in my testicles. It was like I'd been kicked in the nuts! Couldn't swing the club. Had to get friends to take my bag to the car. Called my doctor and got a prescription for antibiotics. After a few days, I was OK. In talking to my general doctor, he recommended I see my urologist. Tried to get in to see the guy who'd performed my surgery, but they were booked. So, ended up seeing another urologist.

In my meeting with him, he explained that after Robotic surgery, strictures can develop that retard the flow of urine. I explained that I always have to push to urinate. Never really discussed it with the surgeon. I guess I thought it was normal. I'd been doing this since the surgery four years earlier. This new urologist was very interested in my explanation and drilled down asking me lots of questions about it. "You shouldn't have that problem after the surgery, you should be pissing like a race horse," he said. So he recommended we do a scope procedure so he could get a good look at it. One procedure in the office would allow him to "see" what the problem was, but it would not allow him to take any corrective action. Another procedure under general anesthesia would allow him to see and likely fix the problem. So, I opted for this later more solution oriented option. We schedule the procedure for late November 2013.

In the procedure, he noted that I do have a stricture. He performed a dilation to make the urethra larger and enhance the flow of urine. He also noticed some scar tissue near the opening of the bladder but he thought it'd be better not to take that action as there'd be a remote chance I could become incontinent as a result. He said the chances are about 5% that cutting near the opening could make me incontinent.

After this procedure, I was able to urinate much better. It was awesome! Also, in his earlier ultrasound exams, he mentioned that my bladder was way larger than normal because I'd been using it to "push" or "muscle" the urine out for four years. So, now I have a large, muscular bladder!

After a couple of months, I noticed that it was becoming more difficult to urinate again. I did several flow tests at the doctor's office. Urination works mostly OK when I'm drinking a lot of water, but I still have to push it out about half-way through. It's been about 10 months sense that procedure and now I'm having substantially more trouble peeing. I'm having a pretty good bit of pain and discomfort from the scar tissue, too. Now, I'm just dribbling. When I'm at the movies and go to the restroom, there are 2 or 3 guys who'll pee at the urinal next to me while I'm there dripping.

While a 5% chance of becoming incontinent is low, I'm still hesitant to have the doctor trim around the bladder opening. I suspect I'll go back in soon for another dilation, but it appears that may just be temporary again. I really hate to do any general anesthesia.

Looking for insights and possible solutions that any brothers might have.

Thanks!

MG

M's e-mail address is: mg4550 AT gmail.com (replace "AT" with "@")

NOTE: M has not updated his story for more than 15 months, so you may not receive any response from him.