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The question you need to ask your radiologist, then, is what their plan is in terms of irradiating tissue outside the prostate gland. For example, do they recommend widening the target field to address potential spread just outside the gland? Do they plan to target any of the pelvic lymph nodes?
If you're not going to be irradiating outside the prostate, then you're not necessarily going to be addressing unseen spread. And if you are going to expand the radiation field, then that changes the side effect profile.
High-genomic risk cancers also sometimes exhibit what's known as radioresistence. That could increase the risk that the whole-gland radiation is less effective at eradicating the disease within the prostate than surgery would be.
You should discuss all this in depth with your care team when weighing the benefits of surgery vs. RT.
Replies to "@ginger38314 The question you need to ask your radiologist, then, is what their plan is in..."
@notpetecrowarmstrong I think your comment goes right to the core of making these surgery vs RT decisions and most certainly is center of my very similar situation to these gentlemen.
Conclusion seems that surgery and post path is the only real way to know the answer which begs to question how a targeted radiation treatment could offer anything but a “hope for the best” scenario.
I’m not excited about looking into surgery as I wait for Pet results but also don’t want to miss the best opportunity to take a kill shot
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I have a 28th appointment with the uroligy surgeon and hopefully my pet
scan will be done by then and hear what he has to say first than go from
there and make a decision soon after.