Dads PSA 43, worried about his wellbeing. Need help!

Chiemo
Chiemo Member Posts: 4
in Prostate Cancer #1

Hi Guys I'm very worried that my dad might have prostate cancer. His latest blood tests revealed a PSA of 43, his 3 previous tests revealed a PSA of 3,3.2 and 3.6. The specialist told him to have a biopsy  when the PSA was 3.6 which he did...they took 10 samples but couldn't find anything.

During this past few weeks he has been sick (fever/flu) and in the last few days he has had some irritation in the testical region...couldn't feel any lumps though. He took a blood test last week and got the results today of PSA of 43. He is booked in next week to have and ultra sound, then from there the GP said she will look at the results and give him a referral back to the specialist. The specialist had previously said that he had a 20% chance of having prostate cancer at 3.6...now it is at 43 is more than 11 times that number.

My dad is in his low 50s, he doesn't smoke or drink alchohol and goes for little runs on the treadmill a few times a week.

Can anyone shed some light on the situation? I know nothing is for certain but what do you think the likelyhood is and if some what treatment option would be the best way?
Also how fast can the cancer spread to different parts of the body?

He does go for regular blood check ups so if he does have it i hope it is at an early stage and curable. I've been reading some links that a PSA of over 40 could mean that the cancer may have spread to other parts of the body :(

Any help would be greatly appreciated. Cheers!             (I live in Australia by the way)

David

 

Comments

  • Samsungtech1
    Samsungtech1 Member Posts: 351
    #2
    PSA 43

    David,

    PSA climbing that fast is not good.  You did not mention if Dr. Did a DRE.  Should have.  Biopsy should be done after DRE.  Do not wait on this.  He needs the DRE and if it shows hardness of the prostate then get biopsy asap.

    Good luck, and please let us know how your dad is doing.

     

    Mike

  • Kongo
    Kongo Member Posts: 1,166 Member
    #3
    High PSA

    David,

    I'm sorry to read of your father's recent tests.  I am sure that this is causing a great deal of anxiety within the family.  As you know, an elevated PSA score could be an indication of prostate cancer but it could be several other things as well including a urinary tract infection, BPH, or simply a faulty lab test.  Certain types of exercise, like bicycle riding that puts pressure on the prostate, can cause elevated PSA readings.  Sex before the blood test can also result in elevated scores.  The flu/fever symptoms and discomfort in the testicles might well be caused by a UTI which can cause very high PSA readings.

    The only sure way to determine if prostaste cancer is present is through a biopsy.  I realize your father has already had a biopsy but a negative biopsy does not rule out prostate cancer.  Typically the samples cover less than 1% of the prostate volume so there are plenty of places within the prostate gland that could harbor prostate cancer and have it not be detected.

    The ultrasound test your GP is going to do typically has a very low probability of detecting prostate cancer unless it is a large tumor mass.  A more comprehensive biopsy, sometimes called a saturation biopsy where 18 or more samples are taken, has a much better chance of detecting prostate cancer if it is present.

    Other things your GP should be doing is a digital rectal exam where the prostate is felt by the doctor and they are looking for bumps or hard spots that might indicate a cancerous area.  You didn't mention whether or not this was done so you should double-check with your father.  Also, the DRE should be done AFTER the blood is drawn for the PSA test because manipulating the prostate gland during the examination will cause PSA to be excreted that will show up in the blood test.

    I understand your concern but frankly it's way too early to start conjuring up all the scenarios you wrote about.  Certainly your father wants to get to the bottom of this as quickly as possible and either rule out prostate cancer or find out if it is there and decide upon an appropriate course of treatment.  Men who are diagnosed with prostate cancer early have excellent long term survival statistics and there are many treatment choices.

    Good luck to you and your family.

    K

  • Chiemo
    Chiemo Member Posts: 4
    #4
    Kongo said:

    High PSA

    David,

    I'm sorry to read of your father's recent tests.  I am sure that this is causing a great deal of anxiety within the family.  As you know, an elevated PSA score could be an indication of prostate cancer but it could be several other things as well including a urinary tract infection, BPH, or simply a faulty lab test.  Certain types of exercise, like bicycle riding that puts pressure on the prostate, can cause elevated PSA readings.  Sex before the blood test can also result in elevated scores.  The flu/fever symptoms and discomfort in the testicles might well be caused by a UTI which can cause very high PSA readings.

    The only sure way to determine if prostaste cancer is present is through a biopsy.  I realize your father has already had a biopsy but a negative biopsy does not rule out prostate cancer.  Typically the samples cover less than 1% of the prostate volume so there are plenty of places within the prostate gland that could harbor prostate cancer and have it not be detected.

    The ultrasound test your GP is going to do typically has a very low probability of detecting prostate cancer unless it is a large tumor mass.  A more comprehensive biopsy, sometimes called a saturation biopsy where 18 or more samples are taken, has a much better chance of detecting prostate cancer if it is present.

    Other things your GP should be doing is a digital rectal exam where the prostate is felt by the doctor and they are looking for bumps or hard spots that might indicate a cancerous area.  You didn't mention whether or not this was done so you should double-check with your father.  Also, the DRE should be done AFTER the blood is drawn for the PSA test because manipulating the prostate gland during the examination will cause PSA to be excreted that will show up in the blood test.

    I understand your concern but frankly it's way too early to start conjuring up all the scenarios you wrote about.  Certainly your father wants to get to the bottom of this as quickly as possible and either rule out prostate cancer or find out if it is there and decide upon an appropriate course of treatment.  Men who are diagnosed with prostate cancer early have excellent long term survival statistics and there are many treatment choices.

    Good luck to you and your family.

    K

    Hi guys thanks for your

    Hi guys thanks for your reply.

    I'm hoping that it is indeed an infection or something like BPH. The very worrying thing is the PSA is over 40, and having been reading online that over 20 is certainly very very risky...i havn't read in cases where the PSA was that high and it was something minor. They are also saying a PSA of over 20 means its unlikely to be BPH...im not sure how credible the website is though.

    Also I dont think the GP did a DRE, ill ask him to confirm later. Hopefully he gets it done when he sees the specialist and then gets another biopsy done.

    I'll keep you posted. Cheers!

  • Chiemo
    Chiemo Member Posts: 4
    #5
    Chiemo said:

    Hi guys thanks for your

    Hi guys thanks for your reply.

    I'm hoping that it is indeed an infection or something like BPH. The very worrying thing is the PSA is over 40, and having been reading online that over 20 is certainly very very risky...i havn't read in cases where the PSA was that high and it was something minor. They are also saying a PSA of over 20 means its unlikely to be BPH...im not sure how credible the website is though.

    Also I dont think the GP did a DRE, ill ask him to confirm later. Hopefully he gets it done when he sees the specialist and then gets another biopsy done.

    I'll keep you posted. Cheers!

    His pain in the testical

    His pain in the testical region has gotten worse and is complaining about a sore back today...he took some pain killing tablets. Been sleeping for a while and just called to book the specialist for the 25th, his ultra sound is on monday i think. Damn!

    This is the urologist he is seeing and had previously did his biopsy - http://www.specialistsdirectory.com.au/dandenong/directory/list.chtml?filename_num=233401

     

  • BLUEpac6
    BLUEpac6 Member Posts: 43
    #6
    dads psa 43

    My psa in jan. 2009 was 110 and was diagnosed to be aggresive carcinoma and out of the prostrate.To make a long story short I radical surgery inAug.2009 and salvage radiation in july 2011 and for the last year my psa has been less than.01 undetectable. there has never been any cancer show up anywhere else.So you can see high psa doessnot always mean the worat.Hope your dads case turns out good.nearly everybodies case is different.

  • Chiemo
    Chiemo Member Posts: 4
    #7
    BLUEpac6 said:

    dads psa 43

    My psa in jan. 2009 was 110 and was diagnosed to be aggresive carcinoma and out of the prostrate.To make a long story short I radical surgery inAug.2009 and salvage radiation in july 2011 and for the last year my psa has been less than.01 undetectable. there has never been any cancer show up anywhere else.So you can see high psa doessnot always mean the worat.Hope your dads case turns out good.nearly everybodies case is different.

    Hi BLUEpac6, I'm glad to hear

    Hi BLUEpac6, I'm glad to hear positive news down your end. Did you have any pain or symptoms leading up to your diagnoses and during?

    My dads pain has gotten worse today, when standing up his testical region is hurting but his okay when lying down or in a sleeping position. He went to the doctor to ask to get pain relief and possibly to go to the hospital. She gave him some pain killers but said there is no use going to the hospital as he may have to wait for several hours and they don't really care about you unless you have an extremely serious condition.

     

  • BLUEpac6
    BLUEpac6 Member Posts: 43
    #8
    psa43

    I never did have any kind of pain.The only symptoms I had something was wrong was Iwould have to get up and go to bathroom maybe three times during night and could not keep a erection very long.When my psa was checked I was not even at the doctor concerning my prostrate but for high blood pressue and high blood sugar.

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