39 and going to urologist for abnormal prostate

Hi ~ Ed & Loved One,                   W elcome to…                                       H ealing W ell                                                                                              and                     A    “ Special ”    W arm W elcome   to   You !         We are looking forward to walking with you as you step onto the next stepping-stone in your path.   You truly have come to the right place.   Thank you so much for reaching out to all of us.     This forum is so special… which you will soon find out!   The sharing shows we care and you realize You Are Not Alone.   We accept your fears ~ because we’ve been there…   We feel your tears ~ because we’ve shed them.   So ~ continue to post and let us travel this path with you!     We have no problem sending you on your way if the biopsy comes back negative!!!   But ~ something to remember….   KNOWLEDGE     IS     POWER   ...   and   POWER conquers   fear   Keeping you close in thoughts and prayers as you move forward…   In Friendship ~ Lee & Buddy     We hope this link helps you!! Scroll down to the 3rd posting when you get there for some quick links.. (Direct Link ~ just click on the title below and a new window will open!   Reminder … click on the REFRESH icon once you get there) Helpful Hints ~ & ~ Direct Links to Important Topic Threads ~ Hope this helps you!! :)

Thanks KW,

I read your journey. WOW! You have been through a lot and I wish you the best.

I'll let you know my findings when I go get tested.

Ed

Hi Big Ed,

Welcome! Please try not to worry unless you find out something for certain. I personally know of someone that have a positive DRE and had a negative biopsy - so it's very possible that it's nothing. Make sure you ask your doc to run a free-psa as well as a regular psa and have it done at a very reliable lab. My opinion is that you shouldn't rush into a biopsy unless your psa / free-psa are out of range or there's a family history. Go for another opinion if necessary.

I recently asked a similar question and here is the link:

https://www.healingwell.com/community/default.aspx?f=35&m=833712

Hi ~ AEG,

I hope this helps! ~ Lee


Excerpt from: “Dr. Peter Scardino's Prostate Book” 2006
Peter T. Scardino, M.D.
Chairman of the Department of Urology ant Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center and
Judith Kelman
Chapter 9 Page 150

The results of a digital rectal exam (DRE) are highly subjective. The same thing one doctor finds suspicious might be entirely overlooked or deemed insignificant by a different examiner. Tiny lumps or bulges may represent meaningless calcifications or benign enlargement of the glad. Only one in five abnormal DRE’s turns out to be cancer.3

3 Catalona WJ, Richie JP, Ahmann FR, Hudson MA, et al: Comparison of digital rectal examination and serum prostate specific antigen in the early detection of prostate cancer: results of a multicenter clinical trial of 6,630 men. J Urol 1994; 1283-1290.

I found this link …but the percentage shows 1 in 4

http://www.prostatecancer.realage.com/content.aspx/topic/34

Excerpt from “Dr. Patrick Walsh’s Guide to Surviving Prostate Cancer”…(Give Yourself a Second Opinion) 2001

Patrick C. Walsh, M.D.
Professor of Urology, The Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions and
Janet Farrar Worthington
Chapter 5 Page 111

PSA is prostate-specific, not cancer-specific. This is why a blood test alone isn’t enough, why a digital rectal exam is also a must. You can have prostate cancer and still have a low PSA level. And, just because you have a high PSA does not necessarily mean you have prostate cancer—many men with high PSA levels don’t. about a quarter of men who turn out to have prostate cancer have a low PSA level, less than 4 nanograms per milliliter. about 25 percent of men with a PSA between 4 and 10 turn out to have cancer.


Best of luck to you and keep us posted.

AEG

Rick,

Thanks for your concern! The waiting is starting to get to me. Everyone tells me I'm too young but the more I read, the more I discover young men getting this too. I go in for my appointment on the 12th of July. Not too long from now but long enough. I'm not sure what the Urologist will want to do but I suspect a PSA test first and go from there.

Good luck with your results, I hope it is all normal.

Thanks friend,

Ed

Tony,

Thanks for the advice. I too wish he would have given me the test and if I knew then what I know now I would have asked for it.

Did you find out from a Prostate exam or just through the blood test first. How did they treat it, did you have surgery?

Thanks again and my best wishes to you,

Ed

Big Ed,

I was 45 when first diagnosed.....39 would be one of the youngest I've heard of, but you're on the right track.  Read up on this stuff a bit, BUT DON'T LET YOUR IMAGINATION RUN WILD --- been there, done that and it doesn't help!

Since you're getting this all checked out, just assume you don't have PC...(easier said than done!)....but even if you have a problem, this is a very manageable afflection for the vast majority of sufferers...HANG IN THERE!

I am 43 and intially found a high PSA through an annual physical. Then the touchy-feely test and of course that was confirmed through my biopsy in May. I'm going in for pre-op July 10th and in for the DiVinci surgery July 31. Looking forward to getting it out but concerned about recovery, but I'm sure I'll be fine.
Good Luck

Thanks for everyones concern. This is such a great website for support. Although it is in the back of my mind I am trying not to worry about it until I see the Urologist. Like many of you have said, it may be nothing. I am at least getting some better sleep now, I guess that is a good sign my nerves are better( or my body got so tired it took over!).
Thanks agian and I will post my results as soon as I know them.
Thanks,
Ed

Big Ed:

My husband was 44 when diagnosed and he chose Brachytherapy (internal seed implant) as his treatment.  I thought he was "too young" to but, unfortunately, cancer knows no age boundaries.  Follow through and have it confirmed either way then do your research and choose the best treatment for you.  My advice is to include your family in your discussions and decisions.  My boys were only 10 and 15 at the time of diagnosis but they're smart boys and they knew from the overall atmosphere in the house "something" was up - include them so they have an opportunity to express their concerns too - it is a family disease.

Good luck to you - be not afraid, early diagnosis is key.

JustJulie

Hang in there, Ed. I'm almost seven weeks out from robotic surgery and am doing fine. As someone posted before, the DRE is highly subjective. The first urologist I went to thought it was a tumor. The second urologist who I ultimately decided to do the surgery said is was nothing more than superficial, probably a calcification. Regardless, my PSA rose to 3.0 (I'm 49) so I had a biopsy. Biopsy came back with 5 core samples with <5% cancer, Gleason 6. Surgery was perfomred on May 21, 2007 and final pathology stated that margins were negative and the cancer was confined, although the Gleason was upgraded to a 7 (3+4). First post op PSA was undectable.

Hang in there. We're all brothers here and are here for your support anytime.

Post Edited (JCL) : 7/5/2007 10:43:19 AM (GMT-6)

 Hi ~ Ed,              Thinking of you                            and wanted you to know!!!!       Stay close….   In Friendship ~ Lee & Buddy  

J We will be here…. And hopefully we can kick you out of here. If not ~   guess what?   We will still be here…. To walk with you!!! I hope you post here ~ so your information stays together for others to see….   Thank you for sharing! See you soon …..   Special Hugs comin’ atchu!!!!!!   From Lee & Buddy