Starting radiation & hormone tx for recurrence: Your experience?

Hello @natem. Hearing that news 8 years after your prostatectomy has to be concerning for you. I am sorry. Have you learned anything more from your Urologist aside from the PSA level having increased? If not, when do you have your next appointment?

natem, what is vital in your current situation is to find out EXACTLY where the recurring cancer lies. Where is it and to what level has it become. Find those answers and proceed from there. Our newer, state of the art proceedures should put you back on track. Let us know what your doctors tell you. I'm with you.

I just had a PET scan about 10 days ago and they couldn't see anything. The radiation oncologist at Johns Hopkins suggested there would be about a 40% he would be able to see it at a .3, I heard there are new ones in CA that can even detect smaller, but probably only a handful because I believe they just approved them in December.

The Surgeon's office and the radiation oncologist have recommended radiation. So I'll start that in about a week. Just wish the PET scan would have picked up the precise location.

My PSA was 0.8 and rising six months ago. I traveled 2,000 miles to UCLA for a PSMA PET scan. The scan showed 4 pelvic lymph nodes that had cancer. A month later I had 5 SBRT sessions and started Nubeqa. My latest PSA was 0.5. Time will tell what the end result will be but my numbers are going in the right direction. I’m 76 years old and was first diagnosed in 2001, had surgery, radiation, and Lupron since.

Thank you for sharing that. I did not learn of the PSMA PET scan until a week or two after I just had a regular one (at JHH, looked like the new one in the pic. But, probably just on the outside.. I don't know how many exist, except 2 in CA at least). May I ask, is this the first, or second time you had radiation? Best wishes to you.

Best wishes to you as well. I had salvage radiation two years after the prostatectomy. My cancer has recurred three times. The first radiation sessions kept the PSA undetectable for more than 10 years.

I started radiation in a Versa Elekta machine and hormone treatment (Orgovyv, orally) a week ago. I had radical prostatectomy 8 years ago and PSA rose this year to <.3 .I think I had a PET scan with the new PSMA machine. Oncologist advised he still would only have a 40% chance of being able to see it. He couldn't, so he recommends above treatment with curability as the goals. I understand if radiation doesn't get it, I believe a remaining course is hormone. While that may be in my future, I hoping for some years without. I'm 61 yo.
Anyone with any experience to share would be appreciated. Thanks.

Thank you for sharing that. May I ask, how long from surgery to radiation, then from radiation to Lupron?

Thank you for sharing that. Were they able to retreat with radiation? Best wishes to you!