How low a PSA? What is the new "normal"?
My PSA is 0.2 after having radiation treatment now just over 2 years ago. Interested also in this metric. Most of my usual body functions are fully changed from "normal" in one way or another after the 27 days of radiation. Almost everything. I am interested in chat with similar men and situations. I am 79.
Any men that want to chat please reach out. Thank you.
Comments
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Hi,
Since you had radiation your PSA will never be undetectable but hopefully stabilize to a certain level. Look for the long stable trend which could fluctuate some from test to test. Good luck..
Dave 3+4
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PSA is a measure of prostate tissue, not necessarily cancer. Since you still have a prostate, you will have a non-zero PSA. It's the rate of change over time that is an indicator of new and potentially cancerous growth. My friends who have had radiation would be very happy with a PSA as low as yours after two years.
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As several have pointed out, an irradiated prostate still produces PSA. Only when the PSA reaches nadir + 2 is there reason for concern and possibly intervention.
A slow decay is good, obviously, but a steady state is fine as well . Mine has been around 1.0 ng/ml for several years. I am NOT complaining (and hope that it will stay in that area).
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Thanks to all for sharing your experiences, detail and fine advice. Do other functional changes have a connection with what we experienced? Say with ED, ejaculation, ejaculate quality and changes, sex drive, orgasm, and other body functions. Is there a way to explore this?
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My PSA has been 0.34 and 0.33 on my last two tests. My doctor is pleased with these numbers. Like Old Salt mentioned….you will have a PSA number because you still have your prostate. They don't get worried about reoccurrence until >2.0 with radiation treatments. Your numbers are really good as far as I can tell. Good luck and keep up the fight.
Buff
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Hi,
To answer your question, maybe. It all depends what else the radiation treatment damaged(nerves,bladder,colon,ect). You will just have to wait and see over the coming months as your body heals. Hopefully not too much will change in the near future.
Dave 3+4
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Hi, thanks for your advice. It has been 2 years since my radiation treatment. I'm just trying to get a handle on what other body changes men have experienced, since their treatment. A simple exchange and dialog. Or even more would be fine. Thanks so much.
Best,
Jack
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Definitely a new normal. I had cyberknife so less radiation sessions but it also left me with some functional changes. Those sessions were about a year ago.
Since then 'normal' has been evolving.
Erections still possible, no issues there. Ejaculation is another matter, radiation killed off the prostate, and 20 years ago I got a vasectomy, so there is no real source of ejaculate, so what I have now is a dry heave :). There's still a happy ending but there's a bit of pain mixed in with the pleasure.
I've had a couple of bouts of proctitis which caused general tenderness and pain when urinating, but that has cleared up at the moment.
With regard to incontinence: I'm usually dry, but have had one incident where I've had a bit of a leak. I've had a few times on my morning walk where I've had a feeling of pressure but Ive been able to power through it without leaking. These usually happen if I haven't peed before my walk, so I'm a lot more careful now. I go to the bathroom before I leave the house for pretty much any reason, and am more conscious of the need to urinate more frequently over the course of a day. An ounce of prevention…..
At night I can sleep the whole night without having to get up, which is pretty good for someone who is 65 years old.
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