Hi, just been diagnosed

Hi Rovert66 and welcome to the forum. I was 71 when diagnosed as T3A N0 M0, with Gleason 4+5=9 and PSA of 15 when treatment started. I had three years of hormone treatment starting in October 2018 and 20 sessions of radiotherapy in Feb/Mar 2019. It's now a full year since my last hormone injection and I had a 6 monthly PSA test last week which came back as 0.2. My oncology nurse says that I am currently in remission so the treatment has worked for me. I will stay on 6 monthly PSA tests for another three years and then move to annual tests if everything stays as it is.

Good luck with your chosen treatment and please come back here with any questions you may have as someone will certainly have been there.

Thanks Seamus, how did you get on with the side effects especially from the hormone treatment? 

Hi Rover

Suppose depends how interested you are in AS , some would rather just get on with the treatment. I was on AS for 4 years , it went ok but did succumb to treatment eventually (RT).

So if u are going for treatment u can have either surgery or RT and HT. Surgery is quicker but a major op and potentially more side effects than RT. 

With surgery you can still have RT after if needed but very difficult the other way round. 

if you are serious about AS could be worth checking on tumour size and location but your stats are low.

Difficult decision I know, take your time and do much research, good luck.

Steve

The only side effect of HT which affected me were hot flushes. They were well managed with a combination of Cyproterone, Evening Primrose Oil, Sage leaves and occasionally a Homeopathic remedy of Sepia (Cuttlefish Ink). The RT was more of a problem with extreme fatigue setting in after the second week. It was an uphill struggle to get fit again after the RT and it tooks a few months but at nearly 75 I am swimming a mile twice a week, walking 30 to 40 miles a month and rowing as often as the wind and tides allow.

I also got very constipated in week three and that has remained with me since. I manage it by adding Oat Bran to my breakfast cereal, taking a sachet of Fybogel daily and eating a few soft figs every day.

Be aware that both Prostap and Cyproterone can raise your HbA1c blood sugar levels. After two and a half years of both I was diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes with an HbA1c level of 54 but, six months after stopping both drugs it was down to 44, in the "Green" zone. I don't know if other hormone treatments carry the same risk but you should always read the PIL that comes with the drugs. Don't let the nurse throw it in the bin! If I had known of this whilst taking them I would probably have adjusted my diet and avoided the Diabetes.

Finally there's the loss of libido from the HT, but in my 70s that wasn't a problem for me and it does come back.

Again, good luck with your chosen treatment path.

I've found that the advice  depends on who you talk to and their specialism. So a surgeon might advise surgery and a radiation consultant might advise radiation treatment. They should meet to discuss you in a multi disciplinary meeting and advise you if there they think one is better than the other. I'm a little younger but a similar diagnosis and probably heading down the surgery route as at 51 they don't think radiation treatment is the best option and I'm not dead against surgery.  Like someone says above, do research and pick what is best for you. Good luck. 

Hi

For me, both the RT and HT caused similar fatigue problems. The hot flushes, which I just put up with, are still with me some 3 months after my last injection of Prostap.

Whilst on RT and HT, I found it difficult to differentiate which was causing the problems. Once the RT finished, ( 37 sessions), the fatigue, lack of strength and stamina were with me for 2 years. I have taken this to be caused by the HT. The stamina is easing  now I have finished the HT course. Its been a very frustrating nearly 3 years since my diagnosis, however, I am still here so it's been worth it.

Stuart