SBRT Side Effects

@dekestet

Very similar to the fusion biopsy procedure. You will do fine👍

@toolbelt

My RO didn’t review with me the treatment plan, so whether or not the beam bending was used, I do not know. I see the radiation team very infrequently.

I do know that the side effect profile I was made aware of showed 1-2% will be bothered by bowel problems and 10-20% will have urinary issues. So I for sure was one of the latter group. I do know that my prostate had suffered low grade prostatitis for years, and showed heavy calcification. I have no idea if that would complicate things or not. A consulting oncologist did not think so. I was not offered the Prostox test that foretells side effect expectations that UCLA has developed, but wish that I had done it. May be time for the Original Poster to still do it.

I never considered or thought that proton had a big advantage over photon radiation. It is just what the facility had available.

@jeffmarc

Thanks for the input Jeff. I was told the side effect profile, but like you said, “won’t happen to me” folly was in play. I asked the RO nurse about the urinary issues I was experiencing and my recollection was that she said almost everyone is affected to some degree. I asked her if it was my prostate or bladder or urethra that hurt, and she said all of the above.

I am much improved now, but know enough to realize that radiation damage may rear its ugly head months or years down the road. The select few that make it through treatment with no side effects and a cure are those Kissed by an Angel.

@oldgreenpaint
I’ve seldom heard from people that said SBRT radiation had no side effects at all. Urinary issues are so common it’s just crazy they say 10 to 20%, but I wouldn’t think it’s so low. Maybe they’re just including people that only had a month or two of discomfort as no side effects.

It could be that only the people that have problems end up in online meetings or forums like this.

@jeffmarc

Agree totally with “Only the People” comment by yourself. Centers of Excellence have thousands of men go through their Prostate Machine every year. Lots of success stories. People that end up on Support Forums I think fall into niche categories. People that have had failed treatments, or at least what they considered failed treatments. This first group I think can lead many to believe that it is all Doom and Gloom, when in fact the Medical Centers are doing overwhelming good. People like myself that once diagnosed does everything they can to educate themselves. I have done so for 15 years. And there are people like yourself that are all about helping any newcomers to the Club. I am trying to be more like you and less centered on myself.

@dekestet My husband is scheduled for the same in May - space oar and three markers; he will also be awake and said he cannot imagine it being worse than the biopsy. His radiologist said most men say it's easier, so fingers crossed.

@scary1
Doing the actual radiation session is very easy. Most people notice nothing while that’s going on. It’s after that when the side effects come in. A few people get fatigue right after. The urinary issues aren’t usually noticed immediately.

Urinary side effects are down to under 5% "long term" when treating with new RT techniques at centers of excellence. This was told to me by several top urologist & RO's at different COE's. Agree with other poster about people on these forums are here because they are having issues, but many more have minimal side effects and no need to post on forums.

When I finished the SBRT and the urinary and bowel problems started a few days later, I was concerned that they seemed to be increasing and contacted my RO. The nurse responded that my symptoms were very common and would subside in 10 days to two weeks. She was spot on and said "it's just the radiation working its way through your body." I thought that summarized the situation pretty well.

The SpaceOAR and fiducial insertion was a breeze - no side effects at all. I was also given three tiny tattoos on my abdomen so I could be lined up in the same way each day. Ethos does not use MRI imaging but instead uses an adaptive CT scan which adjusts the radiation targets each day based on possible organ shifts. I think the margins are nearly as good as the MRI machines. The time in the machine is a little longer due to the scan time spent on obtaining an updated CT scan and then adapting the radiation targeting to it. My RO said it was the appropriate machine to use although MRI machines were available.