Hormone Therapy with ELIGARD

VascodaGama said:

Brian; Copyright protection
Brian

Thanks for caring. I really would like to watch the video. I followed your instructions but got this warning message each time I tried. Is there a different way for getting it?;
“Due to copyright reasons this video program is available for download by people located in Australia only. If you are not located in Australia, you are not authorised to view this video”

http://search.abc.net.au/search/search.cgi?form=simple&num_ranks=20&collection=abcall&query=catalyst

In any case, I got a radio program which addresses the same matter. Is it the same as the video?
http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/healthreport/exercise-and-bones/3606714

There is another site at Yahoo connecting physical fitness with prevention for osteoporosis here;
http://voices.yahoo.com/exercises-treating-preventing-osteoporosis-3430222.html

In fact, I am now very interested in a sort of physical program more intense than the simple daily walk. I want to diminish my abdominal fat.
I am on vacation Off-drugs and start feeling better in terms of fatigue. I think that this feeling is just a trick from my mind because the testosterone levels are still very low. May tests gave results equal to the ones from 3-months ago (T= <0.01 ng/ml; PSA=0.02 ng/ml). However, I see/feel my testes getting bigger and feel more energetic. This goes against what I have read that improvements start about three months after the end of the drugs’ effectiveness period. That should happen, in my case, in August. Could it be my Positive thinking?

Nevertheless I am now confronting another episode in health which I recommend you to consider as a survivor of radiation therapy.
In two occasions (one year apart) I experienced visible blood in my stool. That happen after a daylong at the golf course and I imagined the cause being the stressful exercise (4.5 hours and hot weather). However, three FOBT tests (faecal occult blood test) done in April were positive and my GP sent me for a sigmoidoscopy, that found scar tissue at the end part of the rectum.
The finding could indicate that the blood is due to proctitis caused by radiation (as a late side effect, since RT was done 6 years ago). But my Pca doctor who I visited last week recommended me to get a consultation with a Gastroenterologist for a full colonoscopy.

What could that be? Colon cancer?
I want to believe that the problem is proctitis. Let’s wait before drawing a conclusion.

Thanks again for the information.

The best to you.
VGama</p>

Samsungtech1 said:

Blood
Vasco,
Ihad radiation to my bladder that ended in October, 2010. I found in themonths that followed, to this day, if I strained I would bleed. It is enough to scare you. As long as I donot strain there is no blood. They told me I could have surgery to fix it. I did not want the surgery so I decided not to strain. As long as I do not strain there is no blood.
Do you think it might be related to this? I hope so. There is enough cancer flowing in our bodies to have it pop up anywhere. My oncologist sats that cancer goes two ways. It either goes to the bone, or to the organs. Mine went to the organs. It would seem logical that cancer would go to my intestines. Not sure what type of cancer you have; bones, vs organs, but it seems it stays within its boundaries. Although I am going for a bone scan because of pain in my ribs.
I hope yours is more to do with the radiation. I wish you well.
Good luck.

Mike

VascodaGama said:

Is diet my real problem ?
Brian

Thanks again for the comments on exercise and the added suggestions on my symptoms. Surely I did not want to alarm you for the fact that you could expect similar effects as those of mine. My post was informative and suggestive of vigilance. As you described our RT protocols are different so that one can expect different outcomes.

In fact I also tend to believe that the positive FOBTs may be a cause of diet at my erroneous judgement. My GP told me of similar symptoms in cases of constant soft stools; and I had no hard stool since radiation treatment in Nov/Dec 2006. Radiation have caused to a certain extent lost of sensation at the anal sphincter when passing stool, but the faeces are not hard as before. Traces of blood cannot be seen by the open-eye and the colour looks normal.

The biggest portion in my breakfast has been and it is the cereal 100% wheat bran taken with fruits and un-sugared natural yogurt. I have this (wherever I have been) since a case of acute haemorrhoids 34 years ago at suggestion of my wife, and the problem has healed without medication or treatment, and it never occurred again. However, my diet may be erroneous in guys recovering from SRT. It seems that Fibre equals to healthy diet and friendly bowel “works” but is bad to other health aspects.
Other components in my diet always include lots of vegetables (I love salads and soups), fish and seasonal fruits. That load of fibre makes me think that a big part of the digestion has been done along the years in the intestines.

Nevertheless, I have followed the opposite recommendations of UCSF in RT patients;
“… to avoid or reduce fried foods, greasy foods and highly spiced foods. Reduce foods with insoluble fiber, such as lettuce and cauliflower, and increase low-fiber and soluable-fiber foods, such as bananas, mashed potatoes, applesauce, white rice, canned or cooked fruits and vegetables.
Maintain your intake of lean proteins, such as turkey, chicken and fish, and increase your fluid intake to avoid dehydration…”

http://www.ucsfhealth.org/education/radiation_therapy_for_prostate_cancer/index.html

These two effects (diet and RT) may be the cause of my symptoms, but the other aspect in my journey with PCa worries me. The path report (after RP) indicates positive margins (SV negative) at the two places of dissection, bladder and rectum. These are common extra invasion areas in some patients with voluminous cancers. They also relate to the areas where micrometastases managed to get out from the prostate capsule.

At RT planning this theory was taken and the radiation field protocol included particular care at these two areas which justifies well the scars found at both places. I had no fiducials inserted because I had no prostate but the IMRT (68 Grays in 37 fractions) was done under live guidance with weekly CT. The consequences of radiation effects were pondered at dose planning (I had weekly informed meetings with the radiologist), and knew about the risks but the intent was at cure so that I am hopeful that nothing else than scars occur.

My uro-oncologist does not think that radiation proctitis caused the symptoms after 6 years. The red blood at the two occasions could be blushing in inner haemorrhoidal vessels that burst due to weaker consistence of vessel’s walls.
In any case, without a full colonoscopy one can only guess. I hope to get a convenient answer from a gastroenterologist.

Thanks again for the valuable information. Wishing that you and your friends are doing well and controlling the beast.

Best
VGama

VascodaGama said:

Radiation effects
Brian

Thanks for the wishes. I congratulate your results and sincerely hope you continue the treatment successfully.

Regarding my colon problem, I am still in the “limbo”. I did a “virtual” colonoscopy (colon CT) at the orders of my doctor which image failed to find something. I think it unreliable because this CT can only catch images bigger than 8 mm. The computer software re-construes the image in folds of 4 and that means many portions (small) disappear.
This is probably good for preventive low risk cases but mine is more serious for the history with PCa, radiation treatment and positive FOBT tests.

I have decided to get a consultation with a different Gastroenterologist (specialist in problems with RT scars) and will meet him at the last week of August (waiting for confirmed date as he is on holidays) to follow with due full colonoscopy. I am hopeful for sort of inner haemorrhoids so that one can treat it with Scheriproct cream (prednisone) or similar. This was the medication provided to me just after radiotherapy, but I do not know if the case is that simple.

Soon it will be Spring in your place. Enjoy the flowers.
Where are you from?
I was involved in the FS study (1982) for the railway truck Alice Springs / Darwin.

Best
VGama