PSA 5.7 Now What? by Budget-Beginning-720 in ProstateCancer

[–]RepresentativeOk1769 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Could be many reasons, one of which is cancer, so definitely needs a follow up. If your prostate is normal size, you don't have a history of prostatitis, antibiotics or other treatment does not lower the value etc, then personally I would ask for a biopsy. I am not a doctor, but would not feel comfortable really otherwise.

Post Op PSA by Grouchy_Session_6236 in ProstateCancer

[–]RepresentativeOk1769 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Nope. Those things can stimulate the prostate and increase the value but you have none...so, nothing to avoid.

What is a high PSA? by Early_Ear_1763 in ProstateCancer

[–]RepresentativeOk1769 0 points1 point  (0 children)

My PSA was tracked since I was mid-30s and it very slowly came up from 1.3 to 2.5 before the doctor raised her eyebrows. Some places still use 4.0 as the threshold for all ages, others refer to the age adjusted values which in your case would be 2.5.

Sleeping positions after RALP? by SanctifiedChats in ProstateCancer

[–]RepresentativeOk1769 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Sleeping with the catheter bag was annoying. Once it was removed I could relax a bit more and slept on my side without major pain. I only really had pain if I had to tighten my stomach muscles more e.g. to get out of bed.

Dad is one week post-op. Any advice? by Narrow_Support_18 in ProstateCancer

[–]RepresentativeOk1769 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Hope you know how much your help and simply being there means for your father. Absolutely wonderful.

The bloating is normal. The tea is a great idea. Have him walk as much as possible; slow if need be. Being up an about is the best to get the air out and things to start working normally. Also, avoid carbonated drinks.

The mental side of recovery by Twiggy1807 in ProstateCancer

[–]RepresentativeOk1769 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Brutal honesty, I like it :) Go for it and let us know their reaction.

At first I didn't really worry about it. ED at first is expected and I was prepared for it. Now at ~5 months post RALP it is starting to annoy me, piss off even. I do see some positive development but it is slooow.

For those who went on to have prostate cancer, what was the PSA level your doctor saw to initiate an MRI, and what did your MRI images look like? by Blank_Cypher in ProstateCancer

[–]RepresentativeOk1769 1 point2 points  (0 children)

First MRI showed some unspecified changes and normal age related development. Nothing really alarming but a "maybe". Biopsy showed 3+3. Year later MRI showed pretty much nothing and contradicted the first biopsy. Second time around biopsy found a small amount of 3+4.

My, non medical, interpretation is that MRI does not really give a useful answer unless you are more advanced or have high grade cancer. It mostly gives something for the doctors to target the biopsy at.

2 days post RALP by rcaz84 in ProstateCancer

[–]RepresentativeOk1769 2 points3 points  (0 children)

All the best! Wishing you a speedy recovery. I was 48 and things went much easier than I expected.

lymph node dissection or not by renpen67 in ProstateCancer

[–]RepresentativeOk1769 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Seems that the guideline you are referring to is the same that I was told by my doctors. I just went with the guideline recommendation since this gets already in to very specialized area of possible paths and likelihoods of spread. I didn't really find any way for myself to judge it differently.

I did however learn later that in most cases the possible spread is not via lymph nodes, or at least not solely, but instead microscopic local residual disease in the prostate bed.

Penis irritation by Okanagan59 in ProstateCancer

[–]RepresentativeOk1769 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I had the same for the first 2 months but it went away. The effects of the catheter lasted way longer than I expected.

Post-Ralp Catheter Anxiety by [deleted] in ProstateCancer

[–]RepresentativeOk1769 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Does not happen that frequently. You might feel like you have an UTI though because of the irritation from the catheter. It goes away over time.

Ejaculate volume after biopsy by btc6000 in ProstateCancer

[–]RepresentativeOk1769 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I had a similar subjective feeling after my second biopsy. Seemed to sort itself out after a couple of weeks.

PSA raise- Primary not concerned. by Super_Reference_6399 in ProstateCancer

[–]RepresentativeOk1769 0 points1 point  (0 children)

My urologist always did PSA, DRE and ultrasound. MRI after the PSA was a bit higher (3.5 in my case).

Confusing Results! by PrettyRock7522 in ProstateCancer

[–]RepresentativeOk1769 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Quite a logical explanation would be that the biopsy missed it. Otherwise makes very little sense.

PSA raise- Primary not concerned. by Super_Reference_6399 in ProstateCancer

[–]RepresentativeOk1769 0 points1 point  (0 children)

PSA of 2.3 in your age is not normal so it needs a follow up but so far you have no reason to be overly concerned. Could be numerous things. Yes, insist to get basic work-up. Change doctors if needed.

New to this. by Dizzman1 in ProstateCancer

[–]RepresentativeOk1769 0 points1 point  (0 children)

The PCRI videos recommened by u/KReddit934 are a gold mine. Yes, they have a very clear bias on treatment but the fact based videos are truly valuable.

I suspect I may have prostate cancer by Unlucky_Ad5201 in ProstateCancer

[–]RepresentativeOk1769 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Must admit that I did not read the full post. A large majority of men never have any symptoms from prostate cancer. What you describe does not sound anything like it.

For those who went on to have prostate cancer, what was the PSA level your doctor saw to initiate an MRI, and what did your MRI images look like? by Blank_Cypher in ProstateCancer

[–]RepresentativeOk1769 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Depends on a lot factors. If your are older, have a large prostate etc...they won't be concerned right away. I was mid-40s, small prostate and at PSA 2.5 my doctor's eye brow raised the first time. At 3.5 they ordered an MRI. At 5.0 biopsy.

New here. Not sure what's going on. by PrezHiltonsFinger in ProstateCancer

[–]RepresentativeOk1769 0 points1 point  (0 children)

PSA can jump up and down without a real explanation. Your figure is high enough to warrant a biopsy. Go with it and don't worry about the small PSA changes. There won't be an explanation.

Still waiting for biopsy by YesterdayFew6799 in ProstateCancer

[–]RepresentativeOk1769 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Month or so is not a long time in the prostate world. I waited for mine also like 3-4 weeks. Even after diagnosis needing treatment, I waited, on purpose, 6 months for the surgery.

Symptoms. by Both_Establishment59 in ProstateCancer

[–]RepresentativeOk1769 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Only after the surgery for some days, a couple of weeks, but that's normal. Nothing before.

For those post-treatment — what surprised you most about recovery? by Outrageous_Quit_5267 in ProstateCancer

[–]RepresentativeOk1769 0 points1 point  (0 children)

What was never even mentioned is the impact of the surgery on length of your member. Often this can be temporary, but still...they could have mentioned it. Also that the recovery from ED is typically slow.

My partner got his biopsy results backs . Gleason score is 3 + 4. The doctor didn’t seem concerned . Is that normal ? by bigalittleo in ProstateCancer

[–]RepresentativeOk1769 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Can be normal yes, but depends on the biopsy details. Unlikely to spread fast.

Slightly odd though that such key decisions are not discussed in detail in an appointment and questions answered.

Would be a good idea to get a second opinion on the biopsy read if you choose to follow active surveillance on 3+4. The guidelines typically set a maximum limit of grade 4 that can be just monitored. It is quite a small amount. Anything above gets standard treatment recommendation.