Prostate Cancer Outcomes - Report Card

Me either. Just hope people see this an do not let them put that crap in you. Faster and more profitable for the medical profession. Miserable for the patient

Enjoyed the report. I am a stage 4 guy. While my stage was not mentioned in the report I am at the phase of survivorship any good, or semi-good news works wonders for me. Hope and being social also work great for me. Those are my primary life goals these days. Be hopeful and be social.

Sorry to hear of your stage 4 PCa. I was just diagnosed 4 months ago, so I’m still on the steep end of the learning curve regarding this disease.

Most of my PCa research has been focused on low and intermediate risk disease; since that’s my situation..in that regard, this report was helpful and mostly encouraging about the survival rates of localized PCa.

I have read some about those with metastatic disease and I suppose the “average” prognosis is not so great.

Even so, I did find a study about an older man (87) who lived with his stage 4 PCa for over 9 years.

Not sure the details apply to your case, but I offer it all the same:

It sounds like you have a great attitude and have found a hope that satisfies.

I’ve learned that we can have no better life than to be thankful for everyday the Lord provides…and…if the wisest man who ever lived could say that when the “evil days come and the years draw near of which you will say, “I have no pleasure in them”….it is still our whole duty to “Fear God and keep his commandments.”…then who am I to believe anything less?

Just my thoughts - There are so very many variables when performing a 10-year study and reporting the "facts". Based on all of the differing opinions and agendas, I am somewhat skeptical and would not rely heavily on these studies. Each individual must make a treatment decision based on their situation. New technologies are great, but take a lot of time to fully mature and be proven effective. For myself, when I was diagnosed with GS 7 (4/3) PC, I opted for the old school tried & true radical prostatectomy (robotic assisted). As always, the outcome will be directly related to the hospital support staff and doctor. You must pick a center of excellence and do the research to find the best possible doctor at that center of excellence.

Active surveillance was not even be an option for my intermediate cancer. I can't imagine letting the cancer continue to grow and potentially metastasize, unless you are extremely aged or have other life-limiting issues.

Good luck to all in your treatment decisions,

Jim

Interesting thoughts.

Five months ago I knew virtually nothing about PCa. Then, like all men in this support group, I heard those words “You have prostate cancer”.

For better or worse, my 45 years as an engineering researcher kicked in and I’ve been busy ever since….

What I learned regarding my 3+4=7 with Low Risk Decipher diagnosis is that it’s probably THE “continental divide” (CD) of PCa.

With my particular diagnosis one can find world renowned PCa experts who will make the pitch for EVERY treatment approach from Active Surveillance to RP with adjuvant radiotherapy and ADT (and every possible treatment variant in between) as the best way to go.

As an engineer, who spent 45 years doing research, my approach, when facing a new challenge, is to FIRST get the 30,000 ft view and then work my way down into the weeds of my SPECIFIC challenge.

IMO tbere are two primary takeaways from this study of >8500 men with localized PCa:

1) the 10+ year survival rate for ALL men diagnosed with low and intermediate risk PCa is between 97-99%, NO MATTER what treatment type or AS decision is immediately made.

2) ALL conventional treatment option have a significant risk of negative side effects, especially ADT.

Therefore, I’ve concluded the scientific evidence proves I have time to SLOW down and enjoy the CD view, in between the time I’m digging around in the weeds studying treatments.

You are entirely correct, “Each individual must make a treatment decision based on their situation.”

So now I’m….as they say…working the details.

BTW: If I had 4+3=7 (your situation) I’d have eliminated the AS option and would be moving faster towards a treatment option.

Thanks for your insights!

Alan

Alan, so glad you are taking the time to research the options and making certain the treatment option you decide on align with your personal life expectations. For me, I am probably more biased toward immediate action. I did quite a bit of research, including talking to acquaintances, friends, and extended family members, etc... about their experiences with PC. Also, I had an uncle that died from what I thought was bone cancer in his mid-60s. From talking with his daughters, it turns out that he died from prostate cancer that he had not addressed early enough, and metastasized to his bones. Just one example, but definitely one that made a big impact on my decision to go with a radical prostatectomy and get the known cancer out of my body.

Good luck with your decision,

Jim

I'm at GS 7 (3/4) and have been at the Mayo Clinic for appointments trying to fined out who is the best doctor for surgery. For me it's hard to find out of the serval Drs. there who is considered to be the best surgeon they have. when i ask who is the best one i get they are all consider excellent Drs. Any recommended from anyone ?

Always interested to hear what factor ends up as having the biggest impact when facing a life changing decision.

45 years ago, when attempting to decide which of 9 job offers to accept, I devised a quantitative decision analysis method, by applying a numerical preference value to how each offer faired against a laundry list of personally perceived important attributes.

Of course, this type of analysis takes time; so as to determine the attribute laundry list and how important it really is regarding personal preference.

In my original case, I went with my “quantitative answer” and it shaped the rest of my career.

Even when an “answer” was determined by my method (I’ve used it at other times in my life) I still ended up doing a “gut check” to see if it “seemed to be right”.

As I’ve aged I’ve found (like you) that family has became the most impactful factor, regarding my life changing decisions.

Unlike you, no one in my family has ever had prostate cancer. In fact, just today I received the results of hereditary genetic testing from the PROMISE trial…indicating:

“We did not find anything significant for your
health in the genes we looked at.”

Therefore, my cancer is likely (but not necessarily) to be the result of my diet and/or chemicals I’ve been exposed to in the workplace, over the course of many decades.

Not that understanding how one gets PCa is that important (once your diagnosed ); but knowing it may have been a hereditary issue, or not, can be important information to convey to your family members.

Thanks again for your feedback.

rick29, which Mayo campus are you considering? If it's Rochester, I can say that Dr. Tollefson performed my RARP and he and his staff were excellent. For me, it was about choosing someone who has performed a good number of procedures as well as someone who took the time to understand what was most important to me regarding outcomes of the surgery. I'd suggest getting a few recommendations and then setting up consults for several potential surgeons to see who the best fit for you might be. Dr. Walsh's book on prostate cancer has a good section on questions to ask potential surgeons and is a good place to start.

Good luck!

Rick29 - During my initial phone calls with Mayo staff, I received the same answer - All of our doctors are top notch. After that initial conversation, I learned that I had to ask specific questions - Such as who has the most experience performing the robotic assisted radical prostatectomy, what areas of focus does each doctor cover (I wanted someone focused on the prostate, not a "jack of all trades"), is the doctor academic focused, head of department (administrative focused), etc... I was also fortunate to have two extended family members that worked at Mayo-Rochester who I could reference for contacts in getting more detail.

I ended up going with Dr. Igor Frank at Mayo-Rochester. He was the first to perform the robotic assisted radical prostatectomy at Mayo and the second in the US. Dr. Frank also has a narrow area of focus, which was important to me. Bedside manner was not important to me, but Dr. Frank is awesome here as well. He will spend as much time as you want talking and making sure all your questions are answered. I have referred Dr. Frank to several other men and they have all been quite impressed. For myself, outcome has been phenomenal relative to removal of the prostate/seminal vesicles/lymph nodes and surgical side effects.

Take care and good luck on your journey. Please let me know if you have any questions.

Jim