Decisional regrets

Is there anyway to read this article without becoming a subscriber?

Several guys have reported to be satisfied with the treatment they have chosen. However, many others report regret once the side effects kick in.

The above article is a sort of summary done on a series of studies investigating the discontent of patients and treatment failure, comparing it with the initial prognosis presented by a treating doctor and the decision by the patient;
https://ascopubs.org/doi/10.1200/JCO.2016.70.6317
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5501361/

In her article, Bill Margo mainly discusses surgery but the truth is that all type of therapies involves risks and side effects that will deteriorate the quality of life of the patient and such requires us to reject all treatments or to learn how to accept the occurrence, even in a regretful mood.

My surgery gave me survival and a series of side effects for life (exactly 19 years ago, August 15, 2000). Salvage Radiation added some more. The following Hormonal treatment, ADT, still added some other permanent unnoticed effects, no matter how one quantifies them. None of these treatments managed to get rid of the cancer and the cancer did not cause any of those side effects. I wonder if I would be alive today if I had rejected treatment from the beginning.

I would say that I have chosen the best at each decisional occasion even if such had not given me the smile I was looking for.

Best

VG

I'm aligned with Vasco and Cleveland.  Having been through surgery, radiation, and hormones, the Bandit is still alive and well within me.  I have a growing list of permanent side effects resulting from the treatments, which have all had an impact, to some extent, on my quality of life.

However.....  At each stage of my treatments, from the initial surgery to future palliative treatments, I made and will make my own decisions, based upon the information that was available to me at the time.  Did I make the 'right' decisions each step along the journey?  Who knows....  What I do know, is that looking back and second guessing myself won't change anything from the past or present.  As such, I only focus on the present and future, and I will continue to make decisions, based on the information that is available at each decision point.

Last and most important to me.....  I am convinced in my own mind (right or wrong) that doing nothing from the time that I was initially diagnosed with PCa until now would have been the wrong decision.  I firmly believe that if I had done nothing regarding treatment over the past 8 years since my initial PCa diagnosis, my current condition and quality of life resulting from doing nothing, would have been far worse today and in the future, than it currently is today resulting from the treatments that I have received.  While my current quality of life has been reduced somewhat by the cummulative impact of the treatments that I have received, my remaining quality of life is way more than enough for me to keep moving forward in life, day by day, finding and enjoying life's values and experiences that are still available to me.

to Me having treatment choices messed me up bad ..the waiting fir dr appts .waiting weeks and weeks .hearimg one opinion after anotherv....I much rather would have had one option surgery only and then radiation if needed ..it’s my own fault I did radiation over surgery and it’s been a nightmare fir me ...all because bottom line was I never had any kind of surgery ever and it scared me To death and having too much time and options and drs  that were not very honest screwed me ..I may not die from pc but the anxiety it has caused me will most likely give me a heart attack or stroke ...that’s how bad it is and yes I am seeking help ...but no shrink or pill is going to make me think I choose the right treatment after reading one bad thing after another and another and another bout the cancer I had and how bad radiation for PC is 

Well, I guess I do have a regret.  I regret being diagnosed with prostate cancer.  So where do I go.  Nuke (radiation), gut (surgery, RP) or watchful eye (wait and see).  At this point, I do not regret having the surgery.  Do I have side effects, yes.  Do I wish there were no side effects, yes.  I need to stay focused on, in this order, cancer (PSA undetectable), continence (fully continent), ED (still under construction). When it comes to physically altering your body (surgery or radiation), there will be side effects.  To me regrets or should have, could have, would have are mentally challenging and have no added value in your treatment of PC.  But what do I know.  I am an optimist.  If you give me a box of horse manure, I would look at you and say I know there is a pony in there somewhere.

Steve1961 said:

Side effects

 Really if I could do it again I would run to the hospital for surgery. It seems like all I hear on this board is men bitching about ED.  You guys are all NED and are fully continent  and  some have problem with ED or maybe a smaller penis oh boo-hoo. I know you’re at all saying sure I say that now. Radiation treatment effed me up every which Way but sideways. I have to take Flomax just to P I have not had a decent BOwen movement in a year.  I don’t know what it did to my colon rectum or bladder. My PSA level is only down to 3.6 it may never reach NED. I put a poison in me to kill a poison that I don’t even know will work. This poison could actually create more cancers. Radiation should only be used  for prostrate cancer as a last resort. Last resort meaning surgery failure or if you’re too old or not healthy enough for surgery.  It should be a mandatory practice that every urologist must perform an MRI before any biopsy. Like what was said before in the tread most cancers you only have one option and I wish to God it was the same for prostrate cancer because then I would’ve done the surgery.

 I can go on  about this forum people tellIng me take your time do your homework get multiple opinions ****. The first radiologist I saw Recommended that I do surgery the first surgeon I saw Stanford also recommended surgery plan a and Plan B radition but I waited to see this third one waited for months and during those months I read about nightmares about surgery I heard about nightmares about surgery with me being a fatalist  is scared me ultimately chickened out that’s right I chickened out.

Surgery you do it once it’s done it’s done. You go home deal with the catheter for one week find out exactly what’s going on with your cancer and then in five weeks you know you are NED. Radiation five days a week for five weeks every day seeing people that are very sick people that are you dying young kids and they’re all using the same table and radiation as you. After the third treatment I am on my knees I couldn’t urinate. Dr. tells me to take Flomax second week of treatment diarrhea would not stop. And then after Breaky therapy  bleeding out my butt hole for a week and then having rectal leakage and not been able to control my bowels. And then I hear man bitching about ED in the smaller penis big deal. I screwed up I hope to God and I pray every night that it will turn out good now I get to go have a study done to see why am not urinating right it will probably have to have surgery. Then And then in a few weeks I get a colonoscopy to find out how much damage was done by radiation oh joy man sure wish all I had to worry about was ED what a bunch of whinears you guys are here. Unless you are sex fiends  or maybe your better halves need it bad  and you are afraid they may leave then  an erection I guess would mean more than what I am going thrun

akot of men here act and talk like they are drs..granted a few are scientists and I think that when a newbe asks for opinions ...radition should absolutely never ever even be mentioned as primary Treatment for PC if it is still contained ...NEVER ....and surgeons as well should never mention radiation as  primary treatment either .

Wrong. We are not “all NED with no side effects“. My mental health has taken a hammering, my family had gone through hell, I’ve put on so much weight my vagus nerve is playing up and my confidence is in my boots. I may still relapse. I’ve decided to climb out of the pit though, one step at a time. You can too if you accept what has happened and stop playing the victim card.

I will say it again. Whats done is done. The only healthy thing to do is accept the cards you have been dealt and move on. Soldiers have had their genitalia blown off by IEDs and still made a life. People are born with badly  deformed bodies and become millionaires. Look at Nick Vujivik. My friend faced a painful death from lymphoma and she still managed it with courage and dignity. It’s not easy but it’s possible.

You can too but you just don’t know it. If you are going to remain angry, make use of that anger to drive improvements not beat yourself up or hate the world. Every day you feel like this that bloody disease is winning. Have a day where you feel good and look forward and you’ve beaten it that day. You won’t regret it.

sorry  there are men on this form that are NED  like the fella who started the thread  and are upset about ED that’s what I meant. In my eyes I skipped a vital step that would have been removing the prostrate because I could very well have been NED right now and also not have urinary and bowel issues . maybe I would’ve been NED for a few years or for good even two years I may well be cancer free right now I hope so it’s just in my eyes it is criminal tomoffer radiation as primary treatment in my eyes it should be plan A surgery plan B  radiation and plan c hormone .

I guess my biggest fear is not knowing ..

I mean for all I know the PC could be gone ...I mean the cure rates they say are about the same with either treatment .for all I know it may be gone and never come back .