[chazbo45]

I’m a newbie here, so please bear with me. I am 63 and in good health, generally. One of my grandfathers had prostate cancer but it was only diagnosed late in life (his late 70’s, I believe). He did not die from it. Both of my grandmothers died from other cancers. No other prostate cancer in my family history, as far as I know.

In may 07 I had a psa reading (Beckman coulter) of 2.2. in august 08 it had shot up to 4.8. my family doctor sent me to the urologist and he had me take an antibiotic for 7-10 days to rule out infection. he did the dre and the prostate was slightly enlarged. I took another psa test in late sept. 08 and the reading was 5.0. He then did a biopsy in October 08, which was negative. He said to take another psa in 6 months, which I did in late march 09. the latest reading is 7.7. I am worried.

I have an appointment to see him on april 21 – I guess he’ll do another biopsy. Right? Here are some questions I have:

1. I have read that a rapid jump in psa is one of the worst signs as a predictor of death from prostate cancer Comments?
2. aside from refraining from sex before the psa test, are there other factors that can lead to a high reading? (I take Lipitor, drink alcohol, and take vicodin about 5 days a week for back pain)
3. what about a mri? Can that definitively show prostate cancer?
4. does my rapid rise look particularly bad when compared to the norm?
5. would I be a candidate for the “watchful waiting” approach?
6. what questions should I ask the urologist when I go to him this time?
7. finally, how worried should I be, what should I prepare for, and, if cancer shows up this time, which treatment would be the best alternative if it is early stage?

I don’t want to sound like an alarmist and I apologize for the long post, but I would appreciate any help I can get to ease my mind. All personal stories, articles, books, info suggested is greatly appreciated.

[ohno]

HI,
I wonder how many biopsy cores your doc took. If it was only six, then in my opinion that's not enough, as when I had six it showed no cancer, then I had 12 and it was in 5 cores.

Yes, I believe a MRI can show cancer, so can an ultra sound, but urologists make their living off biopsies. Dr. Wheeler in Florida specializes in MRIS, you can google his site and read what he says by his name + MRIS.

I haven't read anyone who says their PSA didn't rise fast, I also read a rapid rise means aggressive, but I wonder about that, they never say what is a rapid rise, maybe it's 2. to 12. ??? So, 2. to 5. is not rapid??

Sorry, but I think your PSA is indicative of cancer, I'm no doctor, just a patient who did not believe I could have anything wrong with me as I take care of myself and am very active, I'm 64. I also took antibiotics for a spell....my DRE was fine.

Have you had a Free PSA test? It measures how much PSA is bound or free, a low number is bad. It's just a blood test. My score was 12.

At your early stage I recommend HIFU, I had it done, totally painless as it is ultra sound on high frequency. Plus very little chance of ED or incontinence, read the thread "anyone here have HIFU" that is here. It's the same as radiation--without the radiation, as it cooks the prostate. It was a breeze for me and no side-effects what-so-ever, but not many insurance companies pay for it ($25,000.) as it isn't approved in the USA yet, it's in trials. But it's well proven, in use 16 years in Europe and thousands of men in Europe, Japan, etc. have been cured. I wouldn't recommend the trials unless you don't have the money, the doctors don't have a lot of experience. I saw Dr. S. Scionti from Hilton Head, he is the most experienced in HIFU outside Europe, he is a cryosurgeon.

Exercise causes a rise in PSA, that's why sex causes it to rise.

Good luck. Today (4 months after HIFU) it's hard for me to believe I ever had cancer.