87yr old Brother with raising PSA figures

Hi Osca2023 , that’s a very interesting question.  His PSA looks to be doubling annually but it could be contained within the prostate for years and give no problem (I have a friend who had a score of several thousand and still contained). Unfortunately without scans nobody knows exactly what is going on.  So if in January his PSA goes above 20, I suspect he will be offered HT.  If he feels well and is reasonably active then personally I would probably hold off on the HT but if he is not active or in pain, then go for HT.  Quantity over Quality is a really tricky point and is a very personal decision.

Thankyou David ( David2017 ) he is not in any pain, well not that he's told me of, and was far more active than most 87yr olds until the heart problem arose in the early summer this year. Since that he has slowed down considerably. He lives alone, drives and flies away on holiday.

Your thoughts are very much in line with my own.

Rod 

Rod, he sounds to be doing well.  Another consideration for him may be the effect of HT on his heart, so if HT becomes an option, he might need to consider that in discussion with his heart team.

This is just an update on my brother's PSA level, as yet he is awaiting a consultation at the local hospital.

As of January his PSA has risen to 27mg/mL

I will report back after the meeting with his consultant.

Rod

Hope you don’t have to wait too long.  HT sounds the best option but his heart issues need to be monitored I think.

Wow, the local GP / local hospital have really pulled their fingers out (no pun intended). He has a appointment with a consultant on Tuesday 13th.

Please come back if you have any questions anytime

An update for all and David2017 in particular as you showed particular support.

My brother has had a bone scan with the results coming back verbally saying that no spread is detected.

Today he has had a biopsy so we now wait for the results of that. Due to the amount of metal objects in his body an MRI scan cannot be performed.

I will update again when we know more and live in hope that the hospital can offer some treatment.

Hi Rod (Osca2023 ) thanks for the update.  The biopsy will tell all I think.  The key issue will probably be the Gleason score where anything less than 8, I would do nothing.  8 or 9 probably depends on location of any PCa within the gland.  HT remains a very effective treatment (heart permitting) at some point.  Tell him to keep having holidays and enjoy life!

I think a big question here is what do they do for men with a high PSA discovered at a much younger age who might have an ‘amount of metal in their body’? 

second, every life matters but so does the quality of life and potential for treatment adverse side effects. Hormone therapy is good at stopping  the cancer progress for a few years but some men do not do so well on it whilst others are not overly bothered by side effects.

HTH