I was Gleason 4+3=7 almost 7 years ago when I was 51. I chose to go to Northwestern for surgery, as proton therapy required 24 months of ADT, and both proton and radiation presented greater challenges if there was a reoccurrence. After 10 months of undetectable PSA tests, my PSA started to rise. It is noteworthy that I had a lot of stress in my life when my PSA began to rise, which I do not think is coincidence. I then did radiation to the prostate area and 24 months of ADT based upon the advice of my local urologist. This is where I wish I had gone to Mayo or another advanced leading treatment center. Mayo likely would have waited a bit longer to see where the PC showed up on a PET scan and perhaps provided more targeted and better treatment. My local urologist told me then that I probably had 5-10 years left, and although he may be right, the doctors at Mayo are much more optimistic and thought he was wrong to make this prediction.

After about a year off ADT, my PSA started to rise again. I stayed in Rochester, MN and had radiation for 3 weeks. I am now coming off 18 months of ADT and hoping for a cure or to at least kick the can down the road for awhile before considering other treatments. With Dr. Kwon's team, I have frequent PET scans at Mayo to aggressively see any problems and manage my treatment.

Since my initial diagnosis, I eat 10-12+ servings of fruits, veggies, nuts, whole grains, etc. a day, try to avoid sugar, meat and dairy (saturated fat is problematic in my opinion), keep my stress down, exercise daily, and I have a much greater appreciation for life with a better outlook and more gratitude.

I wish you the very best of luck!