← Return to High PSA and worried

Discussion

High PSA and worried

Prostate Cancer | Last Active: Feb 5 11:46am | Replies (19)

Comment receiving replies
@retiredboomer71

Your Urologist will likely recommend an MRI and maybe a biopsy. But don't let that scare you.

Understand that prostate cancer (PCa) is generally slow-growing -- especially low-grade & favorable intermediate-grade PCa.

That is, you probably have time (maybe a lot of time) to research your options.

My Suggestions:

1. Talk with your Urologist about tests he recommends.

2. Don't rush to biopsy -- decide AFTER getting a multiparametric MRI, preferably from a Center of Excellence.

3. Before getting a biopsy, consider getting a PSMA PET/CT body scan. You're injected with a radioactive dye that identifies PCa. (An example is the brightly-lit middle image below.) PSMA PET scan is especially useful identifying PCa sites if you have spread outside the prostate.

4. Old-school biopsies randomly sample areas of the prostate and can miss tumors, especially early-stage small tumors. Instead, get a targeted biopsy (aka MRI-Ultrasound Fusion biopsy), which combines (fuses) your mpMRI with real-time ultrasound images. This allows your Urologist to target your biopsies to areas-of-interest in your prostate. Other areas in the prostate can be randomly sampled as well.

5. Research, research, research. Early on, I found this video helpful:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZUSkWb5QP8A

Best wishes.

Jump to this post


Replies to "Your Urologist will likely recommend an MRI and maybe a biopsy. But don't let that scare..."

This video (and others) are extremely helpful in describing the complexity of this disease. Research as you say is key. Thank you.