My TULSA-PRO Experience at Mayo Clinic - Rochester, MN

It should be interesting to see what your PSA shows in the next test. I imagine it’s gonna drop a lot, just wonder if it’s gonna drop to 3 or 4. Something normal.

Your treatment is a little bit rougher than just SBRT, but the fact that it retains some of your prostate could be a real positive.

Keep us up with your journey, real interesting.

Well good story and good documenting. Just like my 110 cc prostate and my Tulsa Pro experience. You also had transition zone problem and them getting to it. They can't get to those, I had trouble too, so good they got to it when they did but the technology for biopsy has only come forward lately, the old ways of doing would not find these lesions. I hope things stay well for you, you had troubles, but hopefully you are past it.

Hi, read your journey, very interesting. Hopefully, you're on a permanent mend. One question, when you were initially diagnosed at 77 yo, why was a Prostatectomy out of the question? 🤔

It has to do with age. I believe age 70 or early 70's is the maximum age for surgery. As it was explained to me, men have two sphincters that control starting and stopping of urination. One is located between the bladder and the prostate. The other is located on the other side of the prostate toward the perineum. When the prostate is removed during surgery the surgeon also takes the sphincter near the bladder. So one is left with only one sphincter to control urination. I am told that at that age a man will have difficulty gaining enough muscle control of that single sphincter to adequately control the stoppage of urination, hence incontinence and diapers. This was the reasoning given to me by my urologist as well as a radiation oncologist at Mayo. So I tend to believe it to be factual and accurate. Hope this helps.

I commented previously on this forum that the USA is behind the curve in performing Transperineal Biopsies . Certain EU countries have or are considering banning Transrectal Biopsies . Some urologists , even the the USA will not perform the Transrectal . Canada , the UK plus other Asian countries have been using it for years . Now we see Real Time Biopsiess - " In - Bore or Gantry Biopsy " , thus eliminating the " MRI Fusion " problem .

Agreed. Thankfully if I need any future biopsies they will be done at Mayo - Rochester and I was assured Mayo does transperineal. While I didn't like the transrectal fusion biopsy I will credit my urologist for hitting the target at least twice. It was the other 12 or 13 core samples he also took which were not pleasant. We can credit the FDA for keeping us behind in this country.

In general " YOU ARE NOT BEHIND " . My Urologists are at the Princess Margaret Hospital in Toronto , ranked as the 5th Top Reasearch & Treatment Centers of Excellence in the world . Plus "Sunnybrook Hospital " also in Toronto .