Hi @jhowle, Welcome to Connect. I think all of us are uncomfortable when we are not sure what to expect. You are not alone and I'm hoping you can connect with @drggkelley @web265 @proftom2 and others to learn from each others experience. The American Cancer Society has a lot of information that may help answer some of your questions until you meet with your surgeon and oncologist.

Treating Prostate Cancer: https://www.cancer.org/cancer/prostate-cancer/treating.html

Are you able to share what is your biggest concern or question about treatment?

"Not sure what to expect." and of course this is the problem. This was the "high anxiety" phase for me. Everyone is different, but, I'll say this, my numbers were close to that Gleason was 6's and 7's in 8 of 12 cores. PSA was 11.5 when we started investigating. Luckily the MRI and Bone scan showed everything appeared to be encapsulated within the prostate.

I consulted with both a surgeon and radiation oncologist as well. The final decision is unique to everyone's personal priorities and comfort levels. I asked which treatment they would go with if it was them, they both said they would go with the method that they specialized in, so, that question was a bit of a waste, haha. I elected for surgery, I'll give you the reasons I did so if you like, but, perhaps it'd be better for after your consultations. 2 mos post surgery at this point. If you have any specific questions, don't hesitate to ask, I'll be happy to share my experience.

Best of luck to you.

Hi jhowle, your PSA is the same as mine was 3 years ago. Completed Proton Beam radiation and 18 months of Antigen Deprivation Therapy (ADT). If they don't bring up ADT as part of your treatment, ask them about it. My radiation oncologist highly recommended it because of the high risk nature of the cancer. By the way, cancer free for nearly 3 years with PSA negligible. There's a light at the end of the tunnel.

I wish you all the best and am praying for you and everyone here. I have not yet had my biopsy. Discovered a lesion, grade 5 from imaging. Doc says it indicates aggressive. Won't know until biopsy. I am in the same boat. I have found learning as much as possible helps me and this site also is comforting. The good news is that there is a very high probability of recovery. What is your age and family history? How often did you do a PSA? What if any symptoms did you have?