Biopsy 2nd Opinion: Better, but it's still RP time

BruceinPA

To review: I'm 67, have been on Active Surveillance since April 2018 when my first biopsy found one of 12 cores with about 10% of 3+3 Gleason score prostate cancer. Third biopsy in December 2021 came back with one of 12 cores with 22% of 4+4, quite a change. Immediately went into battle mode, deciding on RP surgery - but also, because the grading had changed so much, asked for a 2nd opinion on the biopsy slides from Dr. Epstein at Johns Hopkins.

That 2nd opinion is now in. And it IS different from the original reading. Dr. Epstein found that the sample came in at 4+3, which is a small but significant change for the better. It doesn't change anything about the treatment I've chosen, I'm still scheduled for my date with the surgeon and his DaVinci robot next week. But now I don't feel like my prostate turned into a cancer factory seemingly overnight - this feels more like a natural progression that was not completely unexpected.

I will check back here at some point post-surgery. I've started doing Kegel exercises, and have a PT session scheduled for tomorrow just to make sure I'm doing them correctly. At this point, it's pretty much hoping for the best and leaving things in the robotic hands of a surgeon I trust.

I'd welcome hearing from anyone who wants to share post-surgery experience and suggestions. And thanks to everyone for the feedback to date, it has all been incredibly helpful.

Previous posts:

https://csn.cancer.org/discussion/324463/biopsy-results-are-in#latest

This post disappeared for some reason (and then reappeared) so I recreated it. Replies appear on both.

https://csn.cancer.org/discussion/324466/the-biopsy-results-are-in#latest

And later:

https://csn.cancer.org/discussion/324586/update-rp-scheduled-still-waiting-for-a-2nd-opinion-on-biopsy#latest

VascodaGama

My RP story is surely different from your's as I had open surgery (in 2000, 50 years old), requiring a longer stay at the hospital. However I can say that I enjoyed and felt well after walking in the corridors of the hospital (a square of about 200 meters), doing 4 rounds 2 or 3 times a day in the initial 4 days post op. I never did kegel exercises but fortunatly the squeezing sensation was there naturally keeping me dry since the day of catheter's removal. ED was a different story but somehow I recover to a certain extent as I committed to an active daily protocol recommended by a uro-sexiologist, using a pump 😉, massaging and taking viagra, soon after catheter 's removal. Later I learned in accepting my newer me. 😌

Best

VG

Rob.Ski

Had my RP yesterday. So far so good. Went for 2 walks around hall yesterday, once this morning. Expecting discharge later today. Got expected tightness in abdomen. Doc said it would feel like I did an ab workout, and that is what it's like. Pain not bad, catheter sucks.