Rising PSA years after radical prostatectomy

prostae removed 2 years ago psa is 1 was .5 raised that much in 3 months pet scan detected 6 mil in one lymph node llast year shuld that rise be alarming DR said they can not do another pet scan for one year to see if it is still there just radition i want to wait 3 more months then take another psa test wonding if waiting that long is to risky

Amazing, I can't imagine NOT using the ultra sensitive PSMA PET scan. Unfortunately we are sometimes our only or best advocate.

Stage 4 denotes that the cancer has spread beyond locally to distant locations. My doc started with Lupron(ADT therapy) which I am still using. They soon added chemotherapy (Docetaxel). Six rounds (1 every 3 weeks). My university doc wouldn’t do chemo (because “it’s not effective”) which was why we switched to Mayo about a month after starting Lupron. About a month after the chemo they did external beam radiation therapy 20 doses on my pelvic area and 15 on my hilar lymph node (chest). It’s very important that they do this in the correct order and in such a way not to damage your heart.

I highly suggest you watch Dr. Kwon’s videos. He is at Mayo and is internationally sought out for conferences and treatments. I think he has 3 or 4 on YouTube and or through the Prostate Cancer Research Institute (PCRI).

I also sought out a good natural path doctor (ND not an MD). I highly recommend reading the book “Starving Cancer”. The author did a ton of research in her battle to beat stage 4 cancer. (Not PC, but highly spread. The author is an excellent researcher. My ND also had that book.

We have come to see that most docs have been trained in the same approach to PC. We started at a big ten university system that has a strong medical reputation. However, we found that they are about 5-10 years behind our current treatment approach. I asked my previous doc “what is the prognosis for getting rid of the disease?” He hung his head and said “very low, very low”. At Mayo, the response was “I would be very surprised if you show any cancer in 6-12 months.

I hope this helps. We were in despair a year ago and have have a new outlook. We also met a fellow patient that was going through chemotherapy with the same chemo doc at Minnesota Oncology and was being treated by Dr. Kwon too. He had a PSA of 3400. Yes that’s right. My PSA was only 17 but my Gleeson score was 9/10, indicating highly aggressive. He had a longer, additional treatment plan, but is nearly clear.

There is hope with the right doc’s. Keep educating yourself and seek out the best help. Your life is worth it.

How di you go from Stage 4 which is incurable to clear please? What pills, or treatment

Life IS worth it and cancer is life threatening. I am very much in favor of an aggressive approach to prolong a quality life, mine and others, even if the steps are unpleasant and inconvenient. Best of luck to you all.

Thanks

I drove 10 hours to Mayo Rochester. Best decision ever. My doc’s approach was to go at the cancer aggressively so that you get ahead of it and stay clear for 10 years +. My University docs wouldn’t do this. I went from stage 4 to clear. Do your homework and ask lots of questions.

My wife asked our university doc why he wasn’t doing a PSMA PET scan instead of a regular PET scan. He agreed it was better but since the insurance generally won’t cover it, they don’t mention it. (We called the insurance and paid the $300 premium. My life is worth it.)

Good luck.

Cryptic isn't for everyone, but my MD already told me that's what I could expect, and it hasn't happened yet. (I ask a lot of questions, but I prepare them ahead of time because I know his time is very tightly scheduled. I also know it is the charge nurse who will handle any out-of-appointment questions, so I'm guessing she is sitting there with the MD once a day, going through the questions as quickly as possible, and he's answering as quickly as possible.
So what I'm saying is you got the answer to your question, and nothing else is needed since it's still early to either radiate or test further.
It's early to radiate because it's expensive, you can't go back and do it willy-nilly, and you want to radiate at the time it will make the most difference in the progress of the cancer. (But if you ask for it, they could still do it now, they just focus where they think the cancer might be. And it will affect quality of life.)
It's early to do a PET scan because they are notoriously poor at finding the cancer until levels rise as your MD specified. Of course, they are also expensive, so you want to do them at the best time, especially if you're planning that insurance (or medicare) will cover it.

I am in complete agreement - When you are diagnosed with a life threatening condition, do your research and go to the best center of excellence you can find. To address my prostate cancer (radical prostatectomy), I drove 4 1/2 hours to Mayo-Rochester. The drive is a small inconvenience to support the quality of life for the rest of your life.

Best of luck,

Jim

I had BCM at the end of 21' of .2, then .3 by the time of PET scan and prior to that that relatively new Versa system. I'm presently 63, but had RP at 53 yo and Gleason 9. My PET scan read inconclusive? (Level/grade 3), but they all seemed to believe that was it. I haven't asked, but had it been too small to catch, they may not have extended the treatment area as they ended up doing. It's a double edge sword for me. I wish they had acted quicker, but i waited a few weeks to retest and it had risen to a ,3 when they did the PET scan. My Oncologist suggested there was about of 40% chance of them seeing it. So, it has recently been a year of completing the radiation and Orgvx last month, and extremely grateful to get an undetectable on the sensitive one. One thing I see that does concern me sometimes, is not using a well credentialed Institution, seems like they have the most cutting edge technology. Forgive me, I digress, but these community hospitals scare me. I can understand if there's nothing within a hundred miles or something, but I believe these institutions have local help with temporary housing for the patient. I personally had a friend recently diagnosed with a cancer, I suggested JHH because only 60 miles way, but they chose local. I say no more because I don't want to get in anyone's business, but they approached me, I shared it once. There may be components I'm just unaware of. Best wishes to you!!!