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11 anniversaries since diagnosis of stage 4 prostate cancer

Prostate Cancer | Last Active: Sep 2 6:11pm | Replies (113)
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@stevecando54

I was reading this whole post again, wasn't totally sure on difference of 4a and 4b. I understand now, I have 4b, diagnosed march of 23. I want to say thank you for your post, mentioning it's possible of 10 years. I won't be googling stage 4b anymore, not very positive news, but your post lifted me up, thank you and all the best to you.

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Replies to "I was reading this whole post again, wasn't totally sure on difference of 4a and 4b...."
northoftheborder | @northoftheborder | Jun 11 1:52am

Almost everything you read online about stage 4b prostate cancer is out of date now (assuming you're getting the latest treatments). I'm not trying to be a Pollyanna and pretend there's nothing to worry about — stage 4b is a tough ride — but prostate-cancer treatment has gone through a seismic shift in the past 5+ years. As an article in last month's Scientific American said

«These new strategies have begun to transform this once rapidly fatal disease into a chronic condition that people can live with for years or even for their full life expectancy.»
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/treating-prostate-cancer-at-any-stage/
So while there are no guarantees, it's no longer naïve to keep hoping. When I went to the Canadian Cancer Society's website to read about stage 4b when I was initially diagnosed in 2021, the advice was basically "Learn acceptance, put your affairs in order, and prepare to die" (in more-polite words), which was awful to read; fortunately, within a year my onco team was telling me a very different story.

Will I make old bones? Maybe not. But it's no longer a pipe dream.

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