PSA after Radical

Emerson1
Emerson1 Member Posts: 3
edited March 2014 in Prostate Cancer #1
As there exists a lack of happy precision with PSA testing both pre and post operatively regarding the "aggressiveness" of a particular cancer, I wonder about the presence of a 0.5 or less PSA after surgery (shouldn't it be absent) and whether or not radiation therapy is based upon neither sign nor symptom, but upon a statistical curve. Are there other parameters besides PSA that warrant observation (aside from obvious tumor and/or signs and symptoms)before a course of radiation?

Comments

  • John_66
    John_66 Member Posts: 10
    #2
    Post-Op PSA.
    Wish I knew, also. I'm getting a post-op PSA in early May and will have an appointment with my suregon on May 11th.

    Will post my experience.

    The book below can give you some insights. I recommend it, especially as it's pretty recent.
    It was at my local library, but it can be bought used at Alibris or, no doubt, at Amazon.
    I'd pay for the expedited shipment, if I were you. What's a couple of extra bucks compared to knowledge? !!!
    "Surviving Prostate Cancer" E. Fuller Torrey, M.D. ( Yale University Press - 2006)
  • ismetals
    ismetals Member Posts: 69
    #3
    John_66 said:

    Post-Op PSA.
    Wish I knew, also. I'm getting a post-op PSA in early May and will have an appointment with my suregon on May 11th.

    Will post my experience.

    The book below can give you some insights. I recommend it, especially as it's pretty recent.
    It was at my local library, but it can be bought used at Alibris or, no doubt, at Amazon.
    I'd pay for the expedited shipment, if I were you. What's a couple of extra bucks compared to knowledge? !!!
    "Surviving Prostate Cancer" E. Fuller Torrey, M.D. ( Yale University Press - 2006)

    never heard oa reading of zero
    I just had my 6 month checkup and recieved a score of .06? My pre-op psa was 6.4 with a 3+4 and a biopsy with many cores possitive(cant remember actual #). post op was cancer contained within prostate and nerves spared on the right side. The left side had a large lump leading to removal of everything on that side.
    Incontenace was absent within a few weeks and sexual function is getting better slowly. Viagra and Levitra work and cialis does not.
  • Unknown
    Unknown
    #4
    This comment has been removed by the Moderator
  • Tim55
    Tim55 Member Posts: 1
    edited September 2019 #5
    Rising PSA after surgery....

    I had prostate surgery in December 2019.  Before surgery PSA of 8.4; Gleason 9 )4+5).  Had robotic surgery.  PSA post surgery was .09.... then 1.3.... then 2.4..... eventually, by late July it was 5.4.  Went in for my first hormone shot... had a PSA of 5.1.  Doctor put off the beginning of therapy for a few weeks to see if PSA went down or stayed the same, etc.  Only thing that changed in the last 30 days was my diet.  Loaded up on tomatoes, brocalli, etc.  Anyone out there have a post-surgery PSA elevated like that.... and then have it level off or actually go down?  My hopes are not all that high... but anything positive was good news at this point.

  • eonore
    eonore Member Posts: 185 Member
    edited September 2019 #6
    Tim55 said:

    Rising PSA after surgery....

    I had prostate surgery in December 2019.  Before surgery PSA of 8.4; Gleason 9 )4+5).  Had robotic surgery.  PSA post surgery was .09.... then 1.3.... then 2.4..... eventually, by late July it was 5.4.  Went in for my first hormone shot... had a PSA of 5.1.  Doctor put off the beginning of therapy for a few weeks to see if PSA went down or stayed the same, etc.  Only thing that changed in the last 30 days was my diet.  Loaded up on tomatoes, brocalli, etc.  Anyone out there have a post-surgery PSA elevated like that.... and then have it level off or actually go down?  My hopes are not all that high... but anything positive was good news at this point.

    Rising Psa

    Hey Tim,

    You may want to start a new thread to make sure that your post gets seen.  It would seem that you are a candidate for hormone therapy and salvage radiation.  Do you know why your doctor waited to get started?  Anyway, post a new thread and you will get a lot of responses and thoughts.

     

    Eric

  • Georges Calvez
    Georges Calvez Member Posts: 547 Member
    #7
    Not good news
    Hi Tim,

    That is not good news.
    Your PSA shows a strong rising trend, you can use the tool here to calculate your PSADT, PSA Doubling Time, the shorter the time the faster the rise in PSA and there is a link between the PSADT and the aggressiveness of the cancer.
    https://www.mskcc.org/nomograms/prostate/psa_doubling_time
    The test for PSA is notoriously variable for several reasons; the value of PSA can show variation due to complex reasons in the body, typically a rising PSA level will show a jagged line with a rising trend and the test for PSA itself in not exactly reproducible from one test to another.
    I do not want to go into the technical reasons for this, take a look at one man's experiment where he had a PSA test everyday for 28 days and look how it bounces around despite the fact that he is doing nothing to it in medical terms.
    https://www.yananow.org/PSAexperiment.shtml

    Best wishes,

    Georges
  • Georges Calvez
    Georges Calvez Member Posts: 547 Member
    edited September 2019 #8
    Very treatable

    Hi Tim,

    I should add that if the cancer is still small and in the area of the pelvis then there is a possibility that if you start hormone therapy as soon a s possible and follow it up with radiation you have a not bad chance of beating it.
    Even if you do not it should be containable for years, maybe a decade or more.

    Best wishes,

    Georges

  • Max Former Hodgkins Stage 3
    Max Former Hodgkins Stage 3 Member Posts: 3,819 Member
    edited September 2019 #9
    Georges Calvez said:

    Very treatable

    Hi Tim,

    I should add that if the cancer is still small and in the area of the pelvis then there is a possibility that if you start hormone therapy as soon a s possible and follow it up with radiation you have a not bad chance of beating it.
    Even if you do not it should be containable for years, maybe a decade or more.

    Best wishes,

    Georges

    Rad T

    Yes, Tim, ask your doc about curative Radiation Therapy, which studies show (and which is common sense anyway), the sooner begun, the greater success of complete remission being achieved.  You have not moved into clinical 'relapse,' but rather show refractory disease, or disease not cured by the initial therapy.

    Your initial PSA explosion after R.P. almost definitely was in no part due to dietary changes.

    max

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