Don't neglect your PSA test

[RCinNC]

I think a lot of us on the forum are in that 50 plus age range, so this is a good place to post this.

About a year and a half ago, I got my usual PSA screening at my family doctor. It wasn't high (it was four point something), but it had jumped about a point from the previous test. The family doctor suggested he could just keep an eye on it, but because I've had prostate issues most of my adult life and had a lobe of my lung removed a few years ago due to a cancerous tumor, I decided to go to a urologist. Based on the PSA test he did, he decided to do a biopsy. The biopsy showed I had Stage 1 prostate cancer. And since prostate cancer can be very slow growing, I went on active surveillance, where they monitor your PSA for changes. Back in December another biopsy showed that the cancer was progressing, so it was time to intervene. Since I had to lose about 50 lbs in order to get the surgery, the prostatectomy couldn't be done until May. I had the surgery two days ago. After the surgery, my urologist was able to tell me that there were no signs of the cancer spreading, and it had stayed contained in my prostate. While there's no guarantee that it won't return someday, at least for now the cancer is gone.

I got diagnosed at 58 years old. That's actually not an uncommon age for this. And what really gave me the best chance of fighting it was early detection. More importantly, it was my regularly scheduled PSA exams. When I had the PSA that showed a jump from the previous one, that PSA still was considered low for my age range. If I'd have had just that one test, without a history of other tests to look at, a doctor might not have felt that the PSA number was significant enough to warrant concern. It was the abrupt change in PSA levels that caused the doctor to look deeper into it.

One out of eight men will develop prostate cancer in their lifetime. If I was ten years older than I am now, the doctor might not have decided to treat it at all; it can be a very slow growing cancer, and if you're in your 70's when you get it, it's likely that something else will kill you first. But early detection can give you the most options, so don't neglect that annual PSA test. They aren't foolproof, and you can have a high PSA score and still not have cancer, but my regular testing probably saved me from the much more dire situation of dealing with Stage 3.

 

[Sierra1]

I've been getting annual physicals since I was 40 for exactly this type of thing. Because you're right, we're not getting any healthier as we age. "Catch it early" is a lot better than not catching it or catching it too late. Congratulations on beating it.

 

[SkunkWorks]

Glad you got this sorted!
Not knowing what's going to happen is probably the worst part......................

 

[Cycledude]

Ok but not sure I understand the part about having to loose 50 pounds before doing the surgery, thats a lot of weight to lose.
i also have prostate issues but so far PSA test results are good.

 

[RCinNC]

I had ballooned up to 298 lbs over the past couple years, and the surgeon said he needed me to get down to 250 lbs for the surgery. I think it's because they do the surgery laparoscopically, and all that excess belly fat hampers the way the robot operates. So for about four months I rode my stationary bike every day and ate once a day, and got down to 259. That satisfied the surgeon.

 

[WJBertrand]

Good advice. At 71, I spent last year chasing a prostate issue that turned out not to be cancer (thank goodness). In my case PSA number was 2.7 something, so doc predicted he would not find any malignancy, and he did not. That cystoscopy exam was NOT the most fun I’ve ever had! So far just benign enlargement pretty typical for my age. Now though I’m on a yearly cycle with a urologist as well as my primary physician.

Glad you caught this early. At our age you can’t ignore any change.

 

[gv550]

I've had annual PSA tests and physical exam for the past 20 years, due to my family history. Always been low, 2.x until 3 years ago when it jumped to 8.6. I thought I was toast, worried quite a bit. Nothing happens quickly with the medical system in Ontario and I waited months to get an appointment with a urologist and a biopsy, thankfully the result was benign and my PSA gradually dropped to 3.8 12 months later. I'm now at 2.5 again, seeing a urologist annually and so far, so good. PSA tests are definitely a good thing, but a sudden high score does not necessarily mean cancer. And...... a low score on its own does not exclude cancer.

 

[RCinNC]

That's very true, Garry, and it's important to know what a PSA test actually does. It doesn't detect cancer, it detects an increase in prostate cells. Those can increase for a variety of reasons besides cancer. In fact, I had a PSA test after my cancer was detected that was actually lower than the previous tests.

In my case, the jump in PSA readings triggered a biopsy, which detected the cancer, which led to genetic testing to determine which specific type of prostate cancer I had.

 

[Fennellg]

Cancer Likes sugar and fat. Sugar is essentially carbs. I reversed type 2 diabetes and greatly mitigated prostrate trouble via diet.

We have gotten heavier and unhealthier as a country. (World wide really)

If you step back from it all it starts to make sense. We for the most part could not cut it in the wild. I meet a 23 old young lady who was obese and had already had a heart attack. 12 year olds are developing diseases that use to be relegated to the old.

Look at how fussy we are with Gas Octane and oil. What you put in counts. For us too.

 

[ZigZag]

Great conversation people. Thanks for raising it RCinNC. I think talking about these things openly and honestly helps all of us face them with less stress. I’m in Australia but we have all the same issues of increasing obesity and unhealthy lifestyles leading to poor health outcomes.
I’m in the age zone for all this so also have an annual health check. Currently monitoring for NAFLD.

 

[Sierra1]

I thought it was only us Americans that were unhealthy fat-asses.

 

[Fennellg]

As of 2021, 38.4 million people in the United States, or 11.6% of the population, have diabetes. Of those, 29.7 million have been diagnosed, and 8.7 million have not. 22.8% of adults in the US have undiagnosed diabetes.

According to the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) Diabetes Atlas, 9th edition, 9.3% of the world's adult population (463 million people) had diabetes in 2019. This number is projected to increase

No other animal population has these type of numbers. Unless they are eating our so called food, Even our pet food is processed and full of carbs. Raccoons are thin and more pleasant in the wild. When they eat our garbage, they become very fat and nasty.

 

[Sierra1]

I don't think it so much what we're eating as it is how much we're eating. Don't get me wrong, a double bacon cheeseburger is not good for you. But once in a while isn't going to cause much of a health issue. But one every day will. And even if I only ate lean meat, chicken, fish, etc and veggies . . . . eating triple portion amounts would result in obesity. And overfeeding our pets is the same thing. I have a large dog, and I feed him dog food (Pedigree). 1 cup in the morning and evening. He's coming up on 10 years and is still active. Vet says he still has the "right shape", and isn't overweight.

We've become spoiled and sedentary. Too many calories in, and not enough burned. I have a buddy that's a type-2. Since he started working out with me in January, his blood sugar is staying in the 120-130 range, he's using less insulin, and his A1C has dropped from 6.1 to 5.9. We're wondering if he can eventually be "non diabetic". He's already happy that he feels better and can move around better.

 

[ZigZag]

Bit of a diabetes epidemic here in Aus too.
In the 1980s my boss took his family to Hawaii for a holiday. He came back after a fantastic trip but was stunned by the serving sizes and the type of food that was served for breakfast at the hotel. Lots of sweet food like huge donuts and cakes. It took about 20 years and similar food and serving sizes are the norm here now.People are definitely less active than they used to be too

 

[Wallkeeper]

Glad the cancer looks to be under control.

Good advice to follow in general. Like Sierra, I do the annual physical and pursue changes rather than blowing them off. I have had another 26 years because I did

We all eventually lose the battle with the 2nd Law of Thermodynamics……but it does not have to be today

 

[Madhatter]

women are so much better at the doctor thing and the diet thing and really about everything when it comes to taking care of them selves . we men , we going to walk it off , till one day we cant .
my last visit a few months ago to my urologist was very positive , PSA less than 1 .
@ point 03 .
always glad to get great news from the doctor . but I left there knowing as I grow older than just maybe (probably) one day it will be bad news . so enjoy the good .
I am close to retirement and hopefully I will have more time to take better care of myself . losing weight is my big priority now , but I love good food . so for me its portion control that is helping . I eat what I want just one portion and done . lost 15 lbs so far , have 30 to go. I need to add more cardio to my efforts , I used the push mower for the front yard instead of the rider this week , that's cardio ?

 

[Fennellg]

This topic is too vast to cover. I am surprised we have been allowed to go this far without warnings or deletions. I will attempt to summarize without waking our keepers.

All type 2 diabetics can be cured (reversed) or made considerably better via diet. Type 1 diabetes can also be helped, but will be on insulin for the rest of their lives. The reason a few, very few type 2’s won’t completely reverse, is they have done so much damage they have started to become type 1. They have damaged their ability to make insulin.

Only 30% of those who attempt this succeed, even though the positive results are 100%, for those who implement . There are many reasons, but at the end of the day it boils down to one. Greed. Doctors tell patients every day diabetes is a non curable chronic progressive diseases. I am here to tell you that’s a lie. There are hundreds of thousands who have found the truth and dealt with diabetes effectively without medication.

One last point. 80 to 90 of all disease is diet related. We eat the carbs and sugar. We put on weight. Eliminate the cause of weight gain. We loose weight and get better.

I am 60. I have lost 60 pounds, reversed diabetes, high blood pressure, arthritis, cholesterol……. The list goes on.

I now take no medication at all. Been this way for 2 years working on my third.

 

[holligl]

Nothing happens quickly with the medical system in Ontario and I waited months to get an appointment...

Pretty much anywhere in Canada. An Arizona winter neighbor is facing Colon Cancer, and have been paying out of pocket in the US since they can not get the urgent care they need in Canada. Advocates of socialized medicine take note.
Family history is very relevant in Prostate cancer. My wife's male side has all dealt with an aggressive form of it. Killed her Grandfather, father, and uncle. Brother diagnosed and treated at about 50. She (being a nurse) had heated discussions with her dad's Doctor who downplayed the risk early in his diagnosis, and waited too long. She had to insist on getting the PSA test done on a previous blood sample.

 

[scott123007]

Back on topic...
Two months before my 60th birthday (11 years ago) I had my first physical in about 4 years. (The company I had worked for did not make their insurance payment for a few months before going out of business, so it left us employees no way to get Cobra insurance when they finally folded.) At any rate, once I got insurance again, I immediately got a physical, and with it came back a higher than normal PSA. My doctor made an appointment for me with a urologist who said that generally, any PSA reading over a 5 is reason for concern, but could be other things besides cancer. He did the standard finger in the bung, and even though he felt nothing unusual, he suggested a biopsy for clarity. They go up your rectum, then through your intestines, and into your prostate, (painless) with a narrow scope and some sort of tool that can retrieve core samples of your prostate. Those in return, are read by a pathologist to determine whether the prostate is cancerous or not. Interestingly, to RC's point, I have never heard of prostate cancer being diagnosed by "stages". Maybe different pathologist's measure it differently, but mine used what was called a "Gleason score". It is two numbers ranging from 1 to 6. I don't remember exactly what they represented, and I am too lazy to look it up, but suffice to say the lower each number is, the less aggressive the cancer is. My Gleason score came back as a 3/3 which was considered "average" as far as speed of growth was concerned. My Urologist told me the same thing RC's told him, that was if I was in my mid seventies rather than sixty, I would probably die of something else, but being as I was only sixty, the cancer would get me first. I had options, and chose a Prostatectomy over any of the non removal treatments. My only advise would be, if you are younger, or still enjoy an active sex life, it may be better to go one of the other routes. Although they call the robotic surgery, "nerve sparing" and they claim whatever sex life you had before surgery sex life will return to normal in 3 to 9 months, that was not the case for me, as well as at least 4 other people I know. Ultimately, I like the peace of mind knowing that if it is caught before it has spread outside of the prostate sack, and removed, it will most likely never return. After 11 years, my PSA is still considered "undetectable". The same can not be said for radiation treatments, and if I remember correctly, surgery is not possible after radiation, but those that I know that have chosen that route, claim there sexual performance has never changed. This may help those of you if/when you are faced with this, to make your decision.

 

[Madhatter]

this is a great topic , men talking to other men about things that effect men but men don't normally want to discuss with anyone , including the man in the mirror .