Prostate Cancer Support Group Meeting

My husband had. Prostatectomy 30 years ago and he is still here with me at age 86! It has been a very long battle but worth every day. He is still receiving shots every three months, has had radiation treatments in the past three separate times and now I think he is finally coming to the end of a very long battle. After three years on a chemo drug called enzalutimab, the cancer has returned again. Don’t give up people! The battle is worth it.

Jim - thank you for your comments on HDR; I had only heard of the LDR treatment. It sounds like LDR is an excellent option. We live in Asheville where the newer treatments for PCa are slow to make it to the mountains. We had a very advanced hospital, our only hospital, in our small town that was up for sale and I believe Mayo was being considered; however HCA purchased it so that they could have a healthcare monopoly in WNC. Now, Mission Hospital has zero Cancer Doctors.

I too was diagnosed with aggressive prostate cancer six months ago with the same Gleason score as your husbands. My recommended treatment included 45 Intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) radiation treatments (every weekday for 9 weeks). Before the radiation treatment began the urologist inserted three gold Fiducial markers on the prostate so that the radiation treatment could be precise regarding its target. In addition to the radiation treatment my doctor prescribed two years of hormone treatment (in Europe they recommend 3 years). The doctors did not recommend Brachy therapy. I was told that this was not as effective as IMRT because the radiation seeds can "float" whereby good tissue as well as the cancer cells can be exposed to the radiation. I too did not want to do the hormone therapy and I got several second opinions hoping to find a doctor that would say "hormone therapy was not required". As of this December 24th, I have 9 radiation treatments left and I have completed two months of the hormone therapy. The treatment has some side effects: hot flashes, nausea, diarrhea, loose stool, fatigue, and (the one side effect that no one wants to discuss) the loss of sex drive. The good news - I plan on living more years and to do my best to limit the cancer spreading to other parts of my body. As part of my treatment: I see a clinical therapist once a week that specializes in grief counseling, I joined a prostate cancer men's support group, I see my oncologist once a week, I see a personal trainer at the YMCA twice a week, and I have a very supportive wife; in fact, my wife and I are closer now than ever before. Of all the treatment plans that I have heard of, they MAY include proton therapy, IMRT, Brachy seeds yet hormone therapy has been included in all of them. On my first urology appointment my doctor told me that prostate cancer will not kill you. What he did not tell me was our lives will change. My prayers are with you and your husband.

Jim - thank you for your comments on HDR; I had only heard of the LDR treatment. It sounds like LDR is an excellent option. We live in Asheville where the newer treatments for PCa are slow to make it to the mountains. We had a very advanced hospital, our only hospital, in our small town that was up for sale and I believe Mayo was being considered; however HCA purchased it so that they could have a healthcare monopoly in WNC. Now, Mission Hospital has zero Cancer Doctors.

I too was diagnosed with aggressive prostate cancer six months ago with the same Gleason score as your husbands. My recommended treatment included 45 Intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) radiation treatments (every weekday for 9 weeks). Before the radiation treatment began the urologist inserted three gold Fiducial markers on the prostate so that the radiation treatment could be precise regarding its target. In addition to the radiation treatment my doctor prescribed two years of hormone treatment (in Europe they recommend 3 years). The doctors did not recommend Brachy therapy. I was told that this was not as effective as IMRT because the radiation seeds can "float" whereby good tissue as well as the cancer cells can be exposed to the radiation. I too did not want to do the hormone therapy and I got several second opinions hoping to find a doctor that would say "hormone therapy was not required". As of this December 24th, I have 9 radiation treatments left and I have completed two months of the hormone therapy. The treatment has some side effects: hot flashes, nausea, diarrhea, loose stool, fatigue, and (the one side effect that no one wants to discuss) the loss of sex drive. The good news - I plan on living more years and to do my best to limit the cancer spreading to other parts of my body. As part of my treatment: I see a clinical therapist once a week that specializes in grief counseling, I joined a prostate cancer men's support group, I see my oncologist once a week, I see a personal trainer at the YMCA twice a week, and I have a very supportive wife; in fact, my wife and I are closer now than ever before. Of all the treatment plans that I have heard of, they MAY include proton therapy, IMRT, Brachy seeds yet hormone therapy has been included in all of them. On my first urology appointment my doctor told me that prostate cancer will not kill you. What he did not tell me was our lives will change. My prayers are with you and your husband.

Question for you if you don't mind: is the counselor you see weekly part of a team at the cancer center where you're being treated, or independent? Just curious, as I found a fantastic psychologist when I developed BCR after RP. But she is independent of the center where I'm being treated/managed.

I too was diagnosed with aggressive prostate cancer six months ago with the same Gleason score as your husbands. My recommended treatment included 45 Intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) radiation treatments (every weekday for 9 weeks). Before the radiation treatment began the urologist inserted three gold Fiducial markers on the prostate so that the radiation treatment could be precise regarding its target. In addition to the radiation treatment my doctor prescribed two years of hormone treatment (in Europe they recommend 3 years). The doctors did not recommend Brachy therapy. I was told that this was not as effective as IMRT because the radiation seeds can "float" whereby good tissue as well as the cancer cells can be exposed to the radiation. I too did not want to do the hormone therapy and I got several second opinions hoping to find a doctor that would say "hormone therapy was not required". As of this December 24th, I have 9 radiation treatments left and I have completed two months of the hormone therapy. The treatment has some side effects: hot flashes, nausea, diarrhea, loose stool, fatigue, and (the one side effect that no one wants to discuss) the loss of sex drive. The good news - I plan on living more years and to do my best to limit the cancer spreading to other parts of my body. As part of my treatment: I see a clinical therapist once a week that specializes in grief counseling, I joined a prostate cancer men's support group, I see my oncologist once a week, I see a personal trainer at the YMCA twice a week, and I have a very supportive wife; in fact, my wife and I are closer now than ever before. Of all the treatment plans that I have heard of, they MAY include proton therapy, IMRT, Brachy seeds yet hormone therapy has been included in all of them. On my first urology appointment my doctor told me that prostate cancer will not kill you. What he did not tell me was our lives will change. My prayers are with you and your husband.