Journey begins - age 51, PSA 72

I had my cardiologist switch me from Coreg to metoprolol because my pulse was racing to 120 in the morning when I wasn’t doing anything. It fixed the problem right away. I heard about it from a cardiologist friend who has afib and when he starts feeling it, he takes one metoprolol.

The third day I was in the hospital with afib they gave me metoprolol, about four in the afternoon, and within an hour my Afib was gone. A very useful drug.

It’s not unusual for my blood pressure to be 95/56 in the morning but it’s usually just above 100.

@deku
You did not need to clarify. The question was for me because it is an enormous difference between a 72, which is extremely high, or 7.2 which is just high.

Have you had any other PSA tests that came back this high? If this is the only one that high did any of your medical providers suggest doing another PSA test to see if correct?

Yes, my initial 72.0 result prompted an order to retest two weeks later. My second test showed "only" 67.2, but still quite concerning. I sometimes forget about the second test result, the 72 is what has stuck in my head, and was the number my urologist referenced in my biopsy order.

Those tests are virtually identical — it's normal for PSA to fluctuate in a range like that.

Thanks for your post. I was 51 when diagnosed as well (Gleason 4+3=7). I am now 58. The diagnosis caught me completely off guard. I have had two reoccurrences since and been treated with radiation and ADT twice. I am at Mayo now getting a scan done to monitor my progress as I come off 18 months of ADT.

Believe it or not, I am now happier than I was pre-diagnosis. I appreciate life much more. I have found diet, exercise, greater mindfulness, and lower stress to help a lot to minimize my symptoms (i.e., fatigue, mood, no hot flashes, etc.). Hopefully, your journey will be easier with just one treatment if needed.

One thing I would have done differently is gone to Mayo or some other leading care facility right away rather than use my local urologist. The level of research and expertise is dramatic. Secondly, I went one Christmas without telling my family of a reoccurrence. In hindsight, I think it would have been better for all if I had told them sooner. I suggest leaning on support and not withholding the information. You may be surprised with how people react and how much better you feel sharing.

I wish you the very best of luck! Hang in there.

I can relate. I just turned 56. Had a mri yesterday based on elevated psa , dre and symptoms. It showed 2 lesions. My doctor wants to do a biopsy and is booked into late January . I am not sure if I will find another doctor to do it sooner or wait it out. Doing my research now. Good luck

You definitely should find a different doctor. Are there any medical groups like the Mayo Clinic near where you live? Waiting 2-3 months could allow the cancer to spread if it is high risk.

Your life expectancy may depend on you being proactive.

"Believe it or not, I am now happier than I was pre-diagnosis..."

That's been my experience, too. I wish I didn't have cancer, but I don't want to go back to being the person I was in the "before times," either. My life is much more joyful now.

I wonder how many others here feel that way.

I tend to agree. It's not like you're dying tomorrow, but giving those lesions time to develop is not a good idea. He's right in immediately suggesting a biopsy - it's the definitive way to establish if there's cancer there - and the MRI means that when you do get the biopsy done, they can zero in on the exact location of the lesions, to get good samples.

Might be different in your country, but in New Zealand, I was put on a biopsy waiting list in May 2023, as soon as the MRI came back, and had the biopsy in June. But it was an agonising 6 weeks to get the biopsy results that confirmed cancer.

(edited to say that prostate cancer is one of the slowest-growing cancers, so it may not get worse as quickly as you may be imagining. It's the sloth of cancers)

"prostate cancer is one of the slowest-growing cancers, so it may not get worse as quickly as you may be imagining. It's the sloth of cancers"

True most of the time, but there's a fast-growing variant that affects about 1/20 of us, including me. It's often at an advanced stage already when it's diagnosed and tends to hit young (late 40s to early 60s).

That's what took Johnny Ramone, Frank Zappa, and many others (famous and not famous) from us, but fortunately for me, treatments have advanced remarkably in the past few years.