PSA up again and doubling time again less than 3 months

Sorry to hear that Jaypee.  Only we know what the agony is like to wait 6 or three months for a result.  That is bad enough even if it comes out good.

Next week will be my 3 Month psa test after doubling last time in 6 months.

It never gets easier. Some call it the new normal.  My first 5 years I sailed through. The past two seems like I think about the results more.  And I feel the ADT treatments are taking it's toll on me after seven years years also.  Cancer sucks.

Hope you get it under control Jaypee.

Thomas

Just picking this up Jim. Sorry to see your latest PSA result. I know only too well how that feels unfortunately. Is it time for Enzalutamide or Abiretarone? Is it worth looking at Cabazitaxel? When do you see your oncologist again?

Last night I found myself reading about what position I am likely to be in given my Prostate cancer returned about a year after surgery and the doubling time was 1.2 months. My wife asked me what I was reading. She knew but wanted me to tell her. She asked me to stop reading it as it wasn’t doing me any good. I had a PSA test last Thursday so the result is playing on my mind.

No amount of people telling you how well you look or that none of us know when our number is up helps so all I can say is that I am here for you Jim. There is nothing polite I can say about this disease so I’ll say nothing. Ian.

So sorry to hear that bought tears to my eyes.

Sorry to hear that Jaypee. I have been watching this group for a while and appreciate the help you give others. I am also in the same boat, but from a different start (see my profile). The chemo took the PSA down to 0.24 but now its back to 2.56 with a doubling time of 6 weeks. It really knocks you back when your hopes of a period of stabillity just vanish in one appointment and you realise quite how aggressive whatever survived the chemo might now be. Plenty of treatments left to try, but the waiting for the next set of results is scary.

Thanks for your replies. A bit of moral support is always welcome and appreciated and I can tell from what you’ve all written that you really get where I’m at and how I’m feeling.

I had a lousy night’s sleep last night but when I finally had a clear head late morning I took some of my own advice and called the Prostate Cancer UK Specialist Nurses. As always, they were very helpful and after a half hour conversation they had given me a few things to think about before I see my oncologist next week.

Based on what we chatted about I think I’m going to ask about having a bone scan as I haven’t had one of those for almost 4 years. I’m also going to ask if it’s worth adding Zoladex to the Bicalutamide before going on to anything else, as I’ve not yet had that one and it might help delay the need for either Abiraterone or Enzalutamide, although I‘m 99% certain to end up on one of those at some point. 

The PCUK Nurse suggested I might ask about Cabazitaxel and said I could also have more Docetaxel, but I honestly don’t fancy any more chemo yet whichever drug it is. Ask me in a year’s time and I might say yes.

Thanks again!

Jim

Hi Jaycee

I think we have chatted a couple of times, like you I went through all the treatments, and yep doxcetaxel knocks the stuffing out of you I have plenty of side effects to prove it, but it is effective, as like you my PSA when last checked is 0.04. I know you would have gone through all the results of rising PSA, I would have, at my last blood test I kicked up a fuss not having a scan for around 17 months, my point being, waiting for a PSA rise or anything else when a scan should be done like a blood test not as regular but at least yearly, for peace of mind if anything is found early it can be dealt with, just my opinion on that, as I am a g9 t4.

Your right it is a dammed shame about how this desease just keeps eating away at us, with all we put up with the drugs and treatments how much can a body take.

I certainly hope you get what your looking for a treatment a scan someone to tell you what plan b is best of luck with that.

Take care

Joe

Hi JayPee,

I am very sorry to hear that your PSA has gone up again, but it is still less than 0.5 which is very low compared to most. I am sure there are still a lot of treatment options available to keep the enemy from advancing. Think positive.

I wish you all the best and a Happy 2018.

Hobbit

Hi Jaypee

Seems like a few of us are in the same boat m8 my PSA doubling time is 4weeks, after a failed prostatectomy and a failed radiotherapy I'm not holding out much luck for my  Chemo which I just finished also have zoladex injection and taking Metformin, my next blood test is next week followed by my Oncologist appointment it would be nice to have some good news for a change but I'm not expecting it.

Good luck take care guys

Gary

Folks,

I've followed this thread for a bit and would like to say that the variations in your PSAs are within the experimental error of any lab.  I always remember when I was a GP I tested our lab out by sending 2 examples of the same person's blood taken at the same time and got two widely differing answers.  I too have become concerned with rising  PSAs until I remember that.   The important thing is the line you draw before you take action.  After diagnosis my line was 10 and it went from 4 to 16 in 6 months so I acted and, again unpopular but good for hormone dependent tumours, got castrated 2 years ago and my PSA is 2.7 and I'm in generally good nick.  I don't check it more often than 6 monthly as I find the build-up to test and getting the result too stressful.

PSA can be affected by irritated bowel, constipation, being examined and lots of other stuff so being even quoting it to 3 decimal places is unhelpful. 

I hope that helps

Charles

Hi Charles

Thanks for your post. You’re so right about the build up to testing and then getting the result being stressful. I was able to leave my retesting for 6 months on one occasion but, unfortunately, that was changed back to 3 monthly due to the increase during that time. It was good while it lasted.

My oncologist did used to “draw lines” with me but stopped doing so as, in her words, my cancer was not behaving as expected and was “very badly behaved”. I’ve asked a few times about following a particular treatment course that I’ve read other men have followed, such as having a break from treatment, but have been told that it wasn’t suitable in my case. I was told at one point that nothing would be done until my post surgery and post radiotherapy PSA rose to 4 but, when it continued to increase rapidly, a PET Scan was advised and more treatment was recommended despite not having reached 4.

You mention you were castrated 2 years ago, I wondered if you still have your prostate with your current PSA of 2.7? My oncologist has told me that as I no longer have mine that the only place my PSA can be coming from is prostate cancer cells elsewhere in my body. The PET Scan 3 years ago showed spread into my lymph system so I suppose they’d be there even if nowhere else.

She also told me that my PSA increases are outside the margins of error allowed for and that 3 consecutive increases, each with an approximate doubling time of less than three months, would rule that out anyway, more’s the pity. Also, without a prostate, I’m told all the usual caveats about DREs and riding a bike affecting the PSA result don’t apply.

Apart from my first treatment my PSA has followed a similar pattern after each treatment I’ve had (see my profile) - initial good response, followed by increase, hence my concern.

It’s good that you’re in generally good nick. Long may you remain so!

All the best

Jim