Recently diagnosed

Hi Wardster1 and welcome 

If all your stats are low , u don't give any PSA and MRI doesn't show anything untoward IE just small tumour then active surveillance is a good option.

If u decide to go for surgery then do check on long term side effects some of which u can do without especially at your age although have to say not everyone gets them

Radiotherapy also worth considering.

See what others say

Steve 

Gleason 6 is a good outcome if there is such a thing in this situation.

I also had my results on the 22nd and opted for active surveillance. You can add information to your profile like PSA results and click on other people’s avatar to see if they have their journey documented. 

In the first few months you are bound to be all over the place, but it’s not something to be overly concerned with and active surveillance is a good thing. 

Ask about the routine when, where who etc will be taking and how you will be notified about results. I’m expecting to be contacted by true NTH sometime soon as they will be running my monitoring routine. 

All the best. 

Hello Wardster1 

A warm welcome to the prostate group - although I am so sorry to find you joining us. 

Gleason 6 is considered a very early development and all of the cancer cells found in the biopsy are considered likely to grow very slowly if at all!.

We have some Community members here who have been on Active Surveillance for 8+ years and are still on it so it's not something that should be causing you undue worry and stress. People on AS have regular PSA tests and regular MRI Scans.

Personally I would think twice when you said

Wardster1 said:

so tempted just to get it out of me and have surgery.

This is a knee jerk reaction. Surgery is a major operation and can leave you with permanent urinary or sexual issues. There are treatments just as effective (radiotherapy and brachytherapy) which are much less invasive and can cure any low grade prostate cancer contained within the gland.

I hope the above helps. Do ask any questions, however trivial.

Best wishes - Brian.

Thanks for the reply my psa first one was 4.3 then second was 4.68

That's ok then, I assume that MRI shows smallish tumour well contained, just check at some point but not urgent 

Take your time and do research just to check on best option for you.

Best wishes 

Steve 

I too received the news that I had prostate cancer! It is an unwelcome reality that you have to deal with. My advice is be positive and consult with caring physicians.

I was 79 when I got a diagnosis of prostate cancer but it was slow growing and was advised that “ active surveillance was recommended. I followed that advice with follow up appointments every six months. During this period I researched and found out more about prostate cancer than I ever wanted to know!  I had hoped to treat the cancer with proton therapy because of ease of treatment, little side effects. However, because I had an enlarge prostate, I was not a candidate for proton therapy. I took meds to shrink my prostate hoping to get it small enough to take this treatment but after my third follow up appointment(1.5 years) my cancer had gotten bigger and was encroaching on the edge of my prostate creating a threat of metastasizing. On the recommendation of my doctor I decided to have a prostatectomy. 
Honestly, the surgery was much easier than I had expected, even though some doctors thought I was too old for this major surgery. One night in the hospital and I was home.
If you can avoid the surgery you should! However, be careful not to wait too long!  To delay surgery some doctors recommend hormone therapy. This treatment lowers your testosterone levels because testosterone “ feeds” cancer. But, this treatment will reduce penis size and eliminate having an erection!  A friend of mine took the hormone therapy to “buy some time” but regrets it since he has yet to recover from these side effects!

If you end up having a prostatectomy like I did, here is the down side.  When your prostate is removed cut your urethra tube in front and back of the prostate and then reattach it with no prostate. What ever length your prostate was, which is now gone, shortens your penis by that that length!  Sounds crazy but it’s a fact, in my case it shortened by 1 inch. They say over time it may lengthen but no guarantees.

The other side effects of surgery are incontinence, and inability to get an erection. I’m told both of these side effects can improve with time.  That is my hope!

This is why I recommend you stick with active surveillance if recommended but don’t wait too late! Prostate cancer can be slow growing but needs to be watched closely to prevent spreading!  
in the beginning my doctor recommended active surveillance saying “ the treatment( prostatectomy) can be worse than the cure( cutting out the cancer and being rid of it). I followed that advice as long as I could.  
I hope this will be helpful to you!  I wish I had known all this on the front end! 

Good luck on your treatment! I hope your situation is different from mine and you can avoid the surgery!  If you can’t, surgery is better than letting the cancer take its toll!

Keeping you in my prayers!  

Thank you for that info it's really appreciated. That's my worry leaving it to late, im a believer that if somethings not right then fix it and it's me getting my head around not actually doing anything to sort it. 

That's an interesting detailed post Bill but sounds like quite a lot to get through and think about whereas Radiotherapy potentially simpler and arguably not as many after effects that you have mentioned.

Just saying that for people that are considering both treatment options but not sure which one.

Hope things work out ok for you

Best wishes 

Steve 

I understand, I tend to lean toward “just do it” also! I had my prostatectomy on October 22, 2025, so I’m still dealing with the issues. If I could have ridden out the active surveillance longer, but make sure you watch it closely!

I hope your situation is can avoid the surgery but if you can’t, it’s not the end of the world! 

You may be correct. I had no experience with radiotherapy.