Living with Prostate Cancer: Meet others & introduce yourself

Thanks for the links. I have zero tricks for the memory loss. Very Frustrating.

Sorry, robotic prostatectomy.

@paul805 I'm new to this forum so forgive me if it's been covered earlier, but what is RP.

Thanks,
Dave

Male 64. Had a RP in Jacksonville May 15/19. PSA moved from 3.3 to 5.5 then quickly to 6.5. Biopsy confirmed with a Gleason 8. Surgery went well, with all margins & 24 lymph nodes clear. Gleason reduces to 7. Only issue is DVT’s due to surgery. Also numbness on skin ( I assume DVT related) . All important PSA test scheduled for later August

@tmclain, I'm glad you joined the Prostate group too. Was prostatectomy the only treatment you needed to have?

@dmadi61, cognitive impairment is so frustrating. While not the same cause, you may find some of the blogs posts in the MCI page helpful for dealing with memory issues. You can follow the blog here: https://connect.mayoclinic.org/page/living-with-mild-cognitive-impairment-mci/

Here are a few articles to get you started:
- Revisiting Brain Exercises https://connect.mayoclinic.org/page/living-with-mild-cognitive-impairment-mci/newsfeed-post/revisiting-brain-exercises/
- Coping with Memory Loss in Social Situations https://connect.mayoclinic.org/page/living-with-mild-cognitive-impairment-mci/newsfeed-post/coping-with-memory-loss-in-social-situations/

Have you developed any tricks for dealing with memory issues?

The side effects that are most difficult to deal with for me are from the Androgen deprivation. Total lack of libido. Lessening of mental acuity is awful. My memory is horrible now.

I was diagnosed in May, 2007 and had a radical prostatectomy. I was very fortunate in that the cancer had not spread and I have been cancer free since July, 2007.

Hi @dmadi61, I appreciate hearing how you were able to gain clarity and confidence in your treatment choices through a second opinion. It's so important to be able to weigh all the options. What side effects are you dealing with and which one is the most challenging?

I was diagnosed with cancer in February of 2018. My PSA had gone from 2 to 16. After the biopsy, CAT scan, bone density scan and MRI my urologist wanted to operate immediately. I luckily went for a second opinion at Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa. I first met with a urologist there. He did not recommend I have surgery because the cancer had spread outside of my prostate. The thought being that if I had surgery I would still need radiation therapy to kill the other cancer cells. I was then sent to a Moffitt Radiation Oncologist who reviewed my medical records and recommended another Radiation Oncologist that ran the brachytherapy department. They started me with hormone deprivation therapy (Lupron) to shrink the tumor, stop the spread and make the radiation treatment more effective. I then had the first of 2 scheduled high dose internal radiation treatments. It is an all day procedure where they put you under and wake you several times. The high dose radiation treatment lasted 27 minutes. The Doctor was so happy with the results he cancelled the 2nd Brachytherapy and reduced the external beam radiation from 45 fractions to 25.I continue to get the hormone deprivation therapy every 3 months. Side effects are no day at the beach but if you tell your medical staff everything and do what they say it is manageable. I have 3 more treatments left. Looking forward to moving past this chapter.

My takeaway is that you get a second opinion. Go to a facility that is world renowned at treating cancer. Keep a positive outlook and fight like hell.

Best,
Dan

I will be having the external beam radiation.