Gov Jerry Brown, CA

hopeful and optimistic
hopeful and optimistic Member Posts: 2,339 Member
has joined our club...here is the article and information about the doctor treating at UCSF....I wonder what treatment he is receiving....Jerry, we wish you well.

http://www.cnn.com/2012/12/12/health/jerry-brown-prostate-cancer/index.html

http://urology.ucsf.edu/faculty/facSmall_bio.html

Comments

  • Swingshiftworker
    Swingshiftworker Member Posts: 1,017 Member
    IMRT?
    I heard on the TV that Gov. Brown would be getting conventional IMRT treatment.

    Dr. Small is the co-director of the Urologic Cancer Center at UCSF and has done extensive research on PCa and hormone therapy.

    See: http://www.ucsfhealth.org/cgi-bin/expertDetail.cgi?doctorid=1175

    I find it interesting that Gov. Brown was not offered (or did not choose) CyberKnife treatment instead of IMRT. My radiation oncologist, Dr. Gottshalk, is the Director of CyberKnife Radiosurgey at UCSF and has his office in the same building and on the same floor as Dr. Small. So,it's not like that they don't know each or the available technologies to treat PCa.

    This suggests to me that Gov. Brown's PCa may be more advanced -- probably Gleason 7 -- especially given Dr. Small's specialization in hormone therapy and the fact that they did not go w/CK which would have required fewer treatments than IMRT.

    The Gov's office is probably just being vague about his diagnosis in order to downplay the "risks" associate w/PCa and the effect it may have on the Gov's ability to carry out is duties.

    One seemingly ridiculous statement that I (thought that I) heard on the TV news was that Gov Brown was more susceptible (or likely to have) to PCa because he was previously treated for skin cancer.

    I just took a quick look at this topic on Google and the few article summaries I read said that there was apparently some risk of getting skin cancer from PCa metastases, which (if true in Gov. Brown's case) makes it possible that Gov. Brown's cancer may be more serious than currently revealed.

    Hopefully, the IMRT treatment will be sufficient to arrest the Gov's PCa.