Just diagnosed

Hi Steve,

 Just over 2 weeks wait. 3 weeks next Tuesday.

Brian what is the alternative destination Prostrate Removal or Death??

Kind regards James.

Ok, well fingers crossed.

Let us know obviously

All the best

Steve 

Hello James

I would think (I am not medical) that you will retain your Prostate and be offered HT/RT. 

Sadly if you don't accept any treatment and depending on how aggressive the cancer is (if you have it) yes, Death is one destination - and to be blunt - no one wants to go there.

You have an entire Community with you - we support you - if you need it - I can get you extra support - we all want you to get better - I know of your personal issues but we are here to "hold your hand" through this.

James - we ALL want to help you here - stick with us please.

Best wishes - Brian.

Hi James,

Try and listen to Brian, he and all the rest of us are in your corner.  I know how stressed you are but please try not to overthink treatment side effects. There are plenty treatments and advice, not necessarily medical, to counteract side effects. As you know my husband was diagnosed end of May with a PSA of 252, it had already escaped the gland and there was a hotspot showing up in a pelvic lymph node. His bone scan was normal and a CT scan confirmed cancer but he was started immediately on Hormone tablets then three monthly Prostap injections and yes he had side effects, hot flushes were pretty bad and we tried sage tablets and neck fans etc to no avail, but the Consultant prescribed tablets and he has no hot flushes at all now.  Next came the fatigue, he is a Fork lift driver but still working full time and just took the odd day off for biopsy, scans etc, but we work round the fatigue, after work he walks our two cocker spaniels for an hour, he doesn’t always feel like it but pushes through it and is currently managing over 20,000 steps a day between work and dog walking, as a result he is in bed and asleep most nights by 8 pm, bless him.  I’m just trying to let you know that yes there are side effects but they can be managed James. I’m sure we could all help you find  a way round any side effects you may come up against. You have come so very far please don’t give up now James.  I reiterate what Brian says, we are all here for you.

Sending you a big hug.

Linda

'Hi again Retrovanian,

Normally what happens is that your results need to be analysed to see IF you have a PC and a calculation of what your Gleason score will be if so.

First : Your samples will go to a laboratory where a specialist will look at them, they will then grade the cells with a number (Gleason score) if they find anything that needs grading. This isn't something I would like rushed and I'm sure you wouldn't either.

Next : it will be sent through to a MDT which is a team of : a specialist nurse, a urologist and an oncologist. They will look at all your results and other scans and decide what treatment you need, if any. It won't just be your results. But several peoples results from that week being discussed. This team will meet once a week as a rule, so if your results don't come through by that weekly meeting they will be looked at the next week. 

So, this isn't a quick process as you can imagine. This is a process that is done throughly by people that are specialists in their field and very serious about their jobs.

If you had a serious cancer it would have been seen by the pathologist in the lab and your results would have been rushed through. Which they clearly haven't so logically thinking theres no emergency and it can go through the system at normal speed. Which it sounds like what's happening. 

Tuesday is normal. Because you are waiting it seems like a long time. This is a normal timeline. Everyone is doing their job and working together to get to a place where they can give you the results correctly by following procedure. Because no-one wants to be sued or accussed of not doing their job correctly.

When you get your results you can then move on to whats next "Removal or death" I'm pretty sure death is off the table for you, because your stats are way too low. and removal is getting a bit dated as there's other options out there that are less invasive like: Watch and wait, HiFu, Bracytherapy, RT, HT to consider.  

So. Keep the phones turned on, chill for the weekend and try not to worry too much, things will work out fine.

Best wishes 

L

Thanks again Brian and Linda for you kind words and thoughts. They are much appreciated and give me some hope.

BarryW thanks for that explanation of how things are done I had no idea that is was so complicated. With my Bowel problem the MDT looked at the Scans and decided it was malignant. It was not and they had all but one surgeon misread the Scans. At this time the lesions on my prostrate and bladder where on that Scan I think and had been missed or ignored. The Colonoscopy and Biopsies taken at the time proved it was not Cancer. I have little faith in the Collorectal Department at Oldham Royal now. So can the Pathologist see if it is serious then before it goes on to others? Chilling is not my thing and unfortunately never has been because of my Mental Health conditions. Other people have said no news is good news. So I feel a little more hopeful now but my OCD keeps putting things in my head about aggresive tumours.

Thank you all again.

Kind regards James.

Hello James.

BarryW has given an excellent summary of the process.

To answer your questions, yes the pathologist can see how serious it is. It is their experience which is key to determining whether you have cancer or not.

The pathologist will look at each core taken during your biopsy. They will stain them with a dye and then set them in a type of wax. Thin slices are then sliced off each block and the slice is examined under the microscope. The pathologist knows what a normal cell looks like so what they will be looking for is anything that doesn't look normal. IF the cells look abnormal they can determine how abnormal they look and this, along with how many cores show an abnormality, gives you the Gleason score. They can also determine what type of PCa you have and exactly where it is located. From this explanation you can see that the pathologist has to look at a lot of slices in order to produce their report and it is in everyone's interest that they are not rushed. If anything is really serious needing urgent treatment then they will immediately flag it up to the medical team.

I hope this helps you to understand things a little more.

Look after yourself and you have many people here to help you along the way.

Thank you Alwayshope it does help.

Kind regards James

Still no results after three weeks. I don't think they have been seen by the Pathologist yet, so could still be serious if things are running way behind. They may have lost the results or the Biopsies. My Gp says no results are on my medical records yet so they have not been looked at. He would have a report if they had been.

 Very annoyed with the whole thing. Still having Prostate symptoms so it must be an agressive Cancer.

Kind regards James.

Hello James - Thanks for keeping us in the loop. I share your feelings in the fact you have had your biopsy and you are still waiting for the results - it's the good old NHS - I an sure they will appear on your records sooner than later!

Take some good tidings (I am starting to feel seasonal!!) that Prostate Cancer is usually a slow burner and I think knowing your anxiety if your G P thought it was an aggressive or advanced cancer he would be chasing the results.

You say you are still having "Prostate symptoms" - just what are these and have you had a word with the G P and let him know what they are? 

I am sure just as soon as your biopsy results are know - your urology consultant will let you know the treatment plan - I know it's hard waiting but stick with us - we are getting there.

Best wishes - Brian.