Fw: Recent diagnosis

[Guest guest]

Re: Recent diagnosis

Hello and thank you. I now feel like I'm not alone in this. The cancer was diagnosed after a bioposy was taken. We have only known about the cancer for 4 days so are in the shock/crying/scared/angry phase. The details I have are that the Gleason score is 6, about 15% of the prostate is involved and the stage is T1C. The reading I've done is that this could be worse . . . but it is nevertheless frightening. I just need help understanding what is going on. We're seeing the doctor on the 15th of February to review what we should do - i.e., radiation therapy including 'seeding', etc. I'm so glad to know I now have some where to go for ideas, support, etc. Metcalf wrote:

Anita

Please let the group know what you know about your hubbies tests. Has your hubby got any pains?

Has the doc asked for scans etc to check for details. Do you know if the urologist felt a lump on the prostate. Do you know the Gleason score?

You will probably find that, as with most prostate cancers, the progression is slow.

We have all been through what you are going through now and empathise with you.

Best wishes

(PCa Support group owner)

Hambleton

Selby

Yorkshire

England

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[Guest guest]

Anita,

You are going through what we all have when

we (or our partner) were diagnosed – fear/concern, call it what you will.

I can only tell you that in the vast majority of cases it gets better over the

years.

One of the most common issues we have to

deal with is a sudden focus on our health. Because, broadly speaking, we all

expect Cancer to be fatal, we also expect that it will soon spread an attack

us. But in the vast majority of cases that is simply not so and it is certainly

highly unlikely to be so in Pat’s case from the details you have sent in.

In fact it seems that he may be a candidate for what is known as Active

Surveillance since his diagnosis has many of the aspects of what is known as an

‘insignificant tumour’- that is to say a tumour that is unlikely to

spread and cause any serious problem during the lifetime of the man. I give you

a few links to relevant material on this subject below if you want to read up a

bit more.

But back to Pat’s back pain, because

that is something I can really relate to. About three weeks after I was

diagnosed (way back in 1996!) I too had back pain and immediately thought of

spread, metastasis etc – at that stage I was still under the impression

that I might only have a few months to live, as so many of us did in their early

days. To add to my consternation I started feeling a pain in my groin, just

about where I thought the lymph nodes resided. That confirmed my fear to me.

BUT then I started dealing with the panic and fear and thinking rationally. I

am tall, I played rugby, I had back problems all my life, from the time I was

in my twenties: what I was feeling in my back was no different from what I had

been dealing with for the past 35 years or so. And as to the groin pain, well,

thinking carefully about that too, I realized that the first time I’d had

that twinge was 20 years earlier. I still get those pains from time to time,

but I’m still here.

Good luck on your journey, no matter what

route you take., Here are the links I referred to.

This

is to an article by Dr published in The Lancet http://tinyurl.com/arc8s It

describes a study he is running in UK – there are similar studies at

two locations in trhe USA and one in Canada, as far as I am aware. All report

very positive results.

This

is a piece mailed on a mailing List by Donna

Pogliano, prostate cancer activist and co-author of the

best book on PCa that I’ve read http://tinyurl.com/cen5d

The

definition of ‘insignificant tumour’ that is generally

accepted is

Nonpalpable

Stage T1c

Percent free PSA 15 or greater

Gleason less than 7

Less than three needle cores with none greater than

50% tumour.

All the best

Terry Herbert

in Melbourne Australia

Diagnosed ‘96: Age 54: Stage T2b: PSA 7.2: Gleason

3+3=6: No treatment. June '04: TURP. Mar '06 PSA 17.40 fPSA 23%

My site is at www.prostatecancerwatchfulwaiting.co.za

It is a tragedy of the world that no one

knows what he doesn’t know, and the less a man knows, the more sure he is

that he knows everything. Joyce Carey

From: ProstateCancerSupport

[mailto:ProstateCancerSupport ]

On Behalf Of Metcalf

Sent: 22 March 2006 10:37 AM

To: Prostate Cancer Support

Subject: Fw: Recent diagnosis

Re: Recent

diagnosis

Hello and thank you. I now feel like I'm not alone in this.

The cancer was diagnosed after a bioposy was taken. We have only known

about the cancer for 4 days so are in the shock/crying/scared/angry

phase. The details I have are that the Gleason score is 6, about 15% of

the prostate is involved and the stage is T1C. The reading I've done is

that this could be worse . . . but it is nevertheless frightening. I

just need help understanding what is going on. We're seeing the doctor on

the 15th of February to review what we should do - i.e., radiation therapy

including 'seeding', etc. I'm so glad to know I now have some where to go

for ideas, support, etc.

Metcalf

wrote:

Anita

Please let the group know what you know about your hubbies

tests. Has your hubby got any pains?

Has the doc asked for scans etc to check for details. Do you

know if the urologist felt a lump on the prostate. Do you know the Gleason

score?

You will probably find that, as with most prostate cancers,

the progression is slow.

We have all been through what you are going through now and

empathise with you.

Best wishes

(PCa Support

group owner)

Hambleton

Selby

Yorkshire

England

Yahoo!

Autos. Looking for a sweet ride? Get pricing, reviews, & more on new

and used cars.

Yahoo! Mail

Use

Photomail to share photos without annoying attachments.