2 PLUS YEARS AGO

I was about to back my car out of my garage when i received a call ,from what turned out to be my urologist,after a recent prostate biopsy.

"I have some bad news for you Tony.......I'm afraid that your biopsy indicates signs of cancer in 2 of the 14 samples taken this time............."

I was on my way to play squash and promptly backed my vehicle out into my motorcycle which happened to be parked obliquely behind me,in the driveway!

Hell man.....that's me then........I'd had 61 good years,a good run really,with absolutely no health problems.....but my time had come!

My urologist at the time reckoned that the fact that this appeared fairly low-grade (non-aggressive) allowed me a bit of time to consider my options going forward.

My PSA checks going forward during this "active surveillance" period were to be 3-monthly and we'd monitor the rate of progress in PSA which is a fairly strong indicator of the aggressiveness of the disease.

Another "indicator",I soon discovered (by reading),is the "doubling time" of  PSA, a logarithmic formula used to calculate the possibility of aggressive cancer with the potential to metastasize and migrate to other nearby organs.

I did the calculations and it appeared that mine was generally around 3 to 4 years,a pretty slow rate indicating that the cancer was still contained in the prostate.

Anything below 12 months (1 year) would indicate the possibility of an aggressive cancer,likely to metastasize.

So far so good!

Then ,suddenly,without much notice, an unexpected call from my urologist at the time indicating (ominously) that we....."needed to speak":??

I set up an appointment and it turned out that he felt that the time had come to whip the thing out (he's a surgeon)?

What the ........where did this sudden change in sentiment come from?

Since being diagnosed,around a year before this,I'd tried in vain to obtain a "reference"or two in the various treatment methods.Particularly the removal option (RP).

Surely, if this was the way to go there were a couple of willing testaments from the patients who'd taken this route?

NADA!NIKS!NOTHING!

The father of my son-in law's business partner ,who was the same age and who I co-incidentally remembered from our youth,had recently had his removed using robotic surgery and consented to me discussing the matter with him.I was expecting a "good story"!

What I heard horrified the hell out of me.

Yes the cancer appeared to have been extracted,but the stories of a myriad side effects scared the living %$#@'s out of me!

CHERYL NEW ORLEANS

SOUTHERN CHILE

Impotence.incontinence,nappies,pads,.........forced post op viagra/cialis in huge doses after just to get some blood flow to the "old guy".

Various indefinite meds to ensure the ability to pee without being catheterised for long periods!OK these effects might be temporary or just partial ,but no guarantees in this business!

Hey man.....I really thought...."stuff that, I'd prefer to just leave it,hope for the best,and eventually die, hopefully without too much suffering and pain!"

BACK OF BAVIAANSKLOOF

SHOE-SHINER KIDS QUITO

NORTHERN ARGENTINA

PENSION CUSKO PERU

NEAR INNSBRUCK AUSTRIA

Another old friend of mine ,who'd been diagnosed a year after myself ,with GLEASON 9 (more aggressive diagnosis) had also had RP and suffered various post op side effects and was later found to still have signs of cancer which necessitated further radiation and hormone treatment which comes with a host of debilitating side effects.

OK well that one was ruled out so what next?

Oh....by the way...I hadn't mentioned,this disease has very little by way of symptoms so it's an extremely difficult decision to make.

Aaaah well....which side effects would I be happy to live with ....even though I presently have no debilitating side effects from the disease?

The only minor symptom to date,possibly a slightly more frequent urination and a bit of a blockage in "starting up" with a full bladder!No ED nothing that a normal 63 year old (without cancer) might experience.

By the way........virtually all of my similar aged buddies have exactly the same symptoms which are generally the result of an enlarged prostate and not cancer.

The problem here is that the prostate is really a bad design.It basically provides lubrication to the sperm to help it on it's way and ensure conception in younger years.

Problem is.......the more randy the individual ...the more testosterone produced over a protracted period.....the more the %$#@ing thing grows,till it eventually begins to strangle the urethra causing all sorts of plumbing problems.

ALPS SOUTHERN GERMANY

Mine turned out to not be that large (a friend has an enlarged prostate twice the size of mine,about the size of a small peach!

Ideally it should just be hanging around under the bladder/rectum/urethra etc. ,ready to be lopped off at around 50 when no longer required.

Instead it is literally wrapped around the urethra/seminal vesicles/rectum and bladder,and is very difficult to remove without damaging all sorts of vital organs and nerve endings in the process.

Bad design!!!!!!!!

So what was my next step?.........I changed my urologist 😆