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11 months post-op

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Prostate Cancer
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Sephie
Veteran Member
Joined : Jun 2008
Posts : 1804
Posted 2/18/2009 6:22 AM (GMT -7)
Hello everyone...wanted to share the wonderful news. Hubby's PSA continues to be ZERO almost 1 year after surgery. We are thrilled and so very grateful for this good news. His stats are:

Biopsy 2/2008 PSA 6.4 Ten cores taken, 2 were positive (3+3 and 3+4). Perineural invasion identified in one sample. DRE negative. Clinical stage T1c.

Robotic surgery 3/2008. Both nerve bundles spared. Surgical pathology upgrades him to T3a due to miniscule capsular invasion. Final Gleason score is 7 (3+4); no tertiary Gleason grade identified. Seminal vesicles clean; surgical margins clean. No evidence of disease outside prostate capsule.

First PSA was 3 weeks post-op: results were 0.1. Surgeon said PSA will be 0 next time (which was 7 weeks post-op). PSA continues to be zero!

For all of you just beginning this journey, stay strong - there is a light at the end of this tunnel!
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Purgatory
Elite Member
Joined : Oct 2008
Posts : 25445
Posted 2/18/2009 6:29 AM (GMT -7)
That is a wonderful one year report, Sephie. I hope that is just the beginning of better times for you and your husband.
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James C.
Veteran Member
Joined : Aug 2007
Posts : 4464
Posted 2/18/2009 7:13 AM (GMT -7)
That's really great news. Wishing you a lifetime of zero's.
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Doting Daughter
Veteran Member
Joined : Aug 2007
Posts : 1064
Posted 2/18/2009 9:30 AM (GMT -7)
Fantastic news!! All the best to you both!!!
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sandstorm
Regular Member
Joined : Dec 2008
Posts : 194
Posted 2/18/2009 9:53 AM (GMT -7)
Great news Sephie! The one year Zero club, now that's super good. Congratulations!
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Sephie
Veteran Member
Joined : Jun 2008
Posts : 1804
Posted 2/18/2009 9:54 AM (GMT -7)
Thanks to all of you for your good wishes...our 28th wedding anniversary is this weekend and we will surely be celebrating all of our blessings!

I wish you (and the men in your life) health, happiness, and healing!
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Purgatory
Elite Member
Joined : Oct 2008
Posts : 25445
Posted 2/18/2009 10:23 AM (GMT -7)
Thank you and a big happy 28th for you and your husband.
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Magaboo
Veteran Member
Joined : Oct 2006
Posts : 1215
Posted 2/18/2009 10:41 AM (GMT -7)
Hi Sephie,

Congratulations on your great test results. May the string of zeros continue for man, many years to come.

Magaboo
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klondiker
Regular Member
Joined : Feb 2009
Posts : 43
Posted 2/18/2009 1:52 PM (GMT -7)
Stephie - thank you for sharing the great news . How has his recuperation been following the surgery?
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Sephie
Veteran Member
Joined : Jun 2008
Posts : 1804
Posted 2/18/2009 1:53 PM (GMT -7)
Thanks Sandstorm, Purgatory and Magaboo...

Magaboo, how are you feeling after completing RT? Congratulations on the undetectable PSA!!

Purgatory, appreciate your best wishes for our anniversary. Where the heck has 28 years gone!? Time took on a different meaning this past year ... seems like the months would zoom by until my husband's next PSA test then the days until his doctor called with the results would crawl.

Sandstorm, you bet that the One Year Zero Club is the place to be! I pray that every one going through this joins us in the Club.

Again, to all of you just beginning this journey, take heart. My dear husband was so strong and confident this past year - he is amazing. In fact, he was more worried about how I was coping than anything else (the first couple of weeks after hearing the diagnosis were not good ones for me). With each passing zero PSA, I became less and less worried. That's not to say that I won't worry anymore because I know I will - I don't think I will ever get over my anxiety right before a PSA test. But, each zero that comes in puts more distance between us and this disease and that's a very good thing.
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livinadream
Veteran Member
Joined : Apr 2008
Posts : 1382
Posted 2/18/2009 5:20 PM (GMT -7)
Glad you are renewing your one year membership in the club. Lets pray that you stay here for many years to come.

peace and love
dale
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Ed C. (Old67)
Veteran Member
Joined : Jan 2009
Posts : 2492
Posted 2/18/2009 5:41 PM (GMT -7)
Sephie,
That is the good news all of us wish to have. I'm just post op and will have my first PSA test in 6 weeks. My pathology report is similar to your husbands except my Gleason is 4+4. I wish you and your husband a healthy future with nothing but zeroes.
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BillyMac
Veteran Member
Joined : Feb 2008
Posts : 1858
Posted 2/18/2009 5:42 PM (GMT -7)
Congratulations on the continuing zeros and the upcoming anniversary. May both continue into the far distant future.
Bill
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Purgatory
Elite Member
Joined : Oct 2008
Posts : 25445
Posted 2/18/2009 6:00 PM (GMT -7)
Serphie, know what you mean. Our 35th is coming up on April 6th, hard to believe. From age 40 to my current age of 56, time has flown by. All my kids have grown up, have 2 grandchildren, have been through so much on the medical fronts, both myself and my wife. The older I get, the more thankful I am for what I have. I no longer worry about what I don't have.

David in SC
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Sephie
Veteran Member
Joined : Jun 2008
Posts : 1804
Posted 2/19/2009 6:45 AM (GMT -7)
Thanks again for the well wishes and blessings.

David, I agree completely with you. My husband and I, while not having children, have had our share of ups and downs (who hasn't?) yet we plowed ahead and forged new paths where needed. I'll admit there were times where I wondered if it was all worth it. Looking back, I would change very little because each trial made us stronger as individuals and as a couple.

Dale, Bill, and Old67, bless you for your support. I read this board daily (actually, several times a day) and have learned - and been inspired - by the many wonderful people who post here. Thank God for all of you because you experiences provided me with strength and courage when I most needed it.
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Sephie
Veteran Member
Joined : Jun 2008
Posts : 1804
Posted 2/19/2009 6:53 AM (GMT -7)
Klondiker, sorry I overlooked your post. Recuperation after surgery was pretty good. He absolutely hated the catheter and was miserable for the first 9 days. Once it was out, though, his mood brightened considerably.

Incontinence is coming along. He has good days and not so good days. Went back to work full time about 2 weeks after surgery (too soon in my opinion) and wears a pad (liner) during the day only. Has no incontinence problems at night. ED is still an issue and he'll be discussing this with his urologist this Friday.

The amazing thing was that he had absolutely no pain after the operation. A morphine line was put in pre-op and was removed the next morning because he never used it. He came home with a prescription for Oxy and never had it filled. To help him sleep at night, I would give him 2 Tylenol PMs and that was all he needed.

John (my husband) was never worried about the cancer or the operation - his big concern was pain after the surgery (he admits he's a bit of a wuss when it comes to pain). He came through with flying colors, and my respect for him, which was always very high, went up a few notches.

The first couple of PSA tests rattled me bad - I was torn between wanting to hear from the doctor right away and scared to death about what he would tell me. I can say that while I still become anxious when the 3 month mark rolls around, I am much better with each passing test.

Be well, my friend.
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Purgatory
Elite Member
Joined : Oct 2008
Posts : 25445
Posted 2/19/2009 7:09 AM (GMT -7)
Sephie,

Your last post brings up a good point. It amazes me how little information, support, or real help there is out there for the families and spouses of men going through PC in particular. I was alone with my dr. when I got my dx after the 3rd biopsy. When he told me, I was tough, almost cold about it, like, it was no big deal. Once I got back to my car, I was a broken down person, couldn't pull myself together, couldn't drive. Tried to call my wife 3x, but couldn't get a sentence out. Was it for myself? No, it was because I didnt want her to have to deal with what is my 4th bout with a cancer. I felt bad for her, as I knew somewhat what lie ahead for treatment, and I didn't want to see her go through all that again. Watching someone else suffer or go through an ordeal can be just as hard or even tougher than being on the receiving end. My wife, a nurse, works at a re-hab and long term facility, and sees every spectrum of suffering on a daily place. You always hear about relatives that won't visit the ones in places like that, its not always so easy or cut and dry, some people just can't handle seeing suffering and cant handle being in hospital settings. Not saying they are right, but we cant all be strong.

I know that every married woman here with a husband dealing with PC suffers too in a myraid of ways, must untold, most unnoticed. Their husbands dr. never stop and think of what mental or emotional effect it might be having on them, as they watch over and care for their husbands.

Yes, even my wife was a bit uptight as we waited for the first post surgery psa results to come in, we expected them to be good, hoped they would be good, but it still not the same thing until you get that good result in your hand.

It's kind of an ironic humor with me, the last two times I was dx with cancer, both times, the dr. said just prior to getting the facts, that there was virtually no chance it would be cancer, yet both times it was and both times it was serious. Talk about doing a trick on one's mind and emotions.

I can only speak for me, but I do think about all the wives here at HW, and how they too, suffer emotionally and mentally, for the men they love, and for themselves.

David in SC
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JerseyG
Regular Member
Joined : Feb 2009
Posts : 65
Posted 2/19/2009 7:21 AM (GMT -7)

Sephie, it's great to hear the news about your husband! I'm hoping he receives many many more zeros!

Purgatory, that was very eloquently put. My wife was with me in the dr.'s office when I was dx and she immediately began to cry. I just put my chin up and asked how long did I have to live. After the dr. explained the treatment options (specifically surgery for my case) and possible side effects I told him it wasn't happening. Selfish. After leaving the dr.'s office my wife spoke to me with such passion and emotion. She told me she didn't care about any side effects she just wanted me around for her and my three daughters. I will never forget the look she had on her face while she was speaking with me. I felt like a selfish a**hole. The next day I scheduled the surgery.

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Purgatory
Elite Member
Joined : Oct 2008
Posts : 25445
Posted 2/19/2009 7:26 AM (GMT -7)
Jersey, that sounded like a real life reaction. Right from the start of my dx, my wife made it clear that she could handle any side affects for any length of time, even if it meant forever, she just wanted to make sure I had the best treatment to ensure that I would be around for as many years as possible. With almost 35 years behind us, I can't say I was surprised, and I would feel the same way if the roles were reversed.
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Tony Crispino
Veteran Member
Joined : Dec 2006
Posts : 8151
Posted 2/19/2009 8:37 AM (GMT -7)
Very cool,
Way to go. I hope things stay well for you sephie! We love these reports...

Tony
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