prostate problems

r2d2 · Oct 5, 2004

It looks like I am going to have to take a bit of a forced retirement from the hobby. I am due to go into the hospital next week for surgery to remove my prostate due to cancer. It may take up to a year before I will be able to get it up, provided the nerve sparing procedure works. Furthermore if it does work I will only get the feeling but no ejaculate. The fortunate part is it appears that we caught it early and I made the decision to have it removed almost immediately rather than going the radiation route. Prostate cancer is a very slow growing form of cancer but I was not prepared to wait too long, I did not feel it was worth the risk. It was bad enough I got it with a 1 in 8 chance. If I went into a lottery with those odds I would probably never win.
Anyways, the main reason I am posting this thread is to inform the members of this board to be sure to have a PSA (prostate specific antigen) test done with your yearly medical along with a DRE (digital rectal exam). If you are 50 you should be having this done yearly. If there is a history of it in your family you should be having the test done in your 40's. Even if you do not have a yearly medical, at the very least have the PSA and DRE. The down side to this is there is a $25.00 charge which you have to pay, but this is true life insurance and you will never find it any cheaper. This post is starting to get too long so I will provide additional information in another post later.

james t kirk · Oct 5, 2004

Sorry to hear that dude.

If you don't mind me asking a few questions?

1. How old are you?

2. Any family history?

3. What were the symptoms?

4. How long have you been noticing the symptoms?

I think you are making the right choice with the surgery. I watched a show on CBC about prostate cancer and they followed different guys who had prostate cancer and the treatment routes they chose.

One was Bob Hunter, ex Green Peace / city TV guy. Hunter (god love him) opted for some new noninvasive procedure because he was quite concerned about his potency. He said something like he had had a lifetime love afair with his dick. We can all relate. Anyway, I don't remember what the procedure was, but it was a miserable failure and now he can't have the surgery for some god knows why reason.

Anyway, i feel sorry for Hunter, but they showed this other guy who worked in a body shop who opted for the surgery and he was pretty much cured. This guy who worked in the body shop likened prostate surgery to working on rust in a door on a car. He said that when you had rust, you were best to cut it out because otherwise it would spread.

He was right.

Anyway, all the best to you in your fight. I am sure you will be back in the hobby soon.

cheers

r2d2 · Oct 5, 2004

Here is some additional information. I am 56 and although there is a history of prostate problems in my family I am not aware of anyone else with prostate cancer. The cancer was discovered after I had my yearly exam. When my PSA test was done the doctor noted that it had taken a sharp rise from last year. This is the first indication. The rise being a reading of 3 one year to a reading of 4.5 the next. He repeated the test and got the same results. He then sent me to a Urologist who took a biopsy and he then found the cancer. At this same time I started having problems urinating i.e very slow stream, urgency, frequent nighttime trips to the john. I am not sure if the two are related or if it was just a coincidence. Anyway my doctor suggested Flomax which solved this one problem. Other than this I did not have any symptoms at all. I always felt great and I still do feel great.

If you require additional info here are a couple of sites to start from http://www.abbott.ca/eng/cons/urology.shtml
http://www.cpcn.org/

From these sites you should be able to get more sites.

I would be more than happy to answer any questions anyone may have.

r2d2 · Oct 5, 2004

Regarding the non invasive surgery mentioned. From my research this may very well have been radiation therapy. The drawback to this is that the radiation hardens the prostate therefore if it does not work or if the cancer returns you cannot have surgery. This is one of the reasons why I opted for the surgery. If the cancer does happen to return you have other alternatives.

antaeus · Oct 5, 2004

good for you for posting, it's an important issue, and becoming more common to report on, discuss, etc.

I saw the CBC show too. Didn't it follow 3 men, the third, from BC? had different experimental procedure - subcutaneous implantation of radiation emitting pellets. I think I remember that it worked for the man. Also, wasn't this same procedure reported as successful on breast cancer.

My uncle had prostate surgery and although the procedure was successful he had second surgery soon after to deal with infection. He experienced years of problems with infection, eventually stopped by some procedure involving bladder surgery. But unfortunately he's not the same man, age notwithstanding.

Sorry, not trying to be a downer, just information.

antaeus

kramer · Oct 6, 2004

Good luck bro.

Thanks for sharing your experience.

train · Oct 6, 2004

Good luck R2D2 .

I have known several people with this problem and all were "cured" so the odds are with you . If you felt up to it I'm sure it would remove the fear of surgery for others if you commented about how it affected you a year later .

Thanks for the reminder .

Cobra1 · Oct 6, 2004

Thanks for the info

I remember the founder of Intel commenting that Prostate doesnt get the attention of breast cancer yet should.

The other thing a med person told me - that we should all be cognizant of - is that is prostate cancer doesnt kill us - we will probably die having it - meaning we should all be concerned about it for its inevitability.

Shades · Oct 6, 2004

Good Luck R2D2. Wise decision.
And thanks for posting this...it reminds me it is time for my annual check up...I just need to find a doctor with smaller hands!

hambone · Oct 6, 2004

nearlynormal said:
Thanks for sharing your experiences. My regular doctor recently retired so now I have this new young female MD so I can't wait for her to check me out. BTW I'm about your age and have had a PSA test which was OK so I'm wondering if you've received any advice about prevention, especially by using supplements such as saw palmetto, pygeum africanus, cerniton, stinging nettle etc. The prostate is central to one's sexual functioning so I'd dearly love to take care of mine if I can.

Lately the advice seems to be to eat lots of cooked tomatoes. They used to advise Beta Carotenes but a study in Finland found some evidence of increased prostate cancer in men who took large doses of Beta Carotenes

r2d2 · Oct 8, 2004

prevention

The latest study seems to indicate the use of vitamin E and Selenium to ward off prostate cancer. I was provided with a sample of an over the counter drug called Silexin distributed by Provantex. This contains everything necessary as a preventive measure.

banshie · Oct 8, 2004

I was diagnosed with prostate cancer last November. After much research I opted for brachytherapy (radioactive seeds inserted into the prostate). The procedure is much less invasive than surgery, and the side-effects are (usually) less. Both treatments have excellent survival rates, provided the cancer is at an early stage. (They won't do brachy if it is beyond the early stage).

I have some erectile dysfunction, and my ejaculate is reduced. Both functions, however, may come back completely in time. The lack of ejaculate is not really a big deal (except possibly psychologically). I have had a couple of "dry" organisms since the procedure, and they were as good as if I had ejaculated.

The decision concerning treatment is a difficult one, and there is no "best" solution that fits all. Some guys, when told they have PC, want the thing removed completely, and they clearly should opt for surgery. Others, like me, who do not feel this strongly need to examine all the options (and there are many) carefully. You have to be happy with your decision, whatever it might be.

banshie · Oct 8, 2004

r2d2. Are you aware of the Man-to-Man support group? I strongly advise you to go to their meetings. They are a great bunch of guys, and the sessions are very useful, particularly for those between diagnosis and treatment.

PM me for details, if you wish.

r2d2 · Oct 8, 2004

support groups

There are a number of support groups available and I have already been in touch with a gentleman concerning this. I do thank you for for the advice and concern. One of the links I put in my posting is a link to support groups. Thanks again.

clipper · Oct 8, 2004

Nerve Sparing Technique

I had this procedure. My surgery was painless, and I made a rapid and complete recovery. I have excellent bladder control. I have been cancer-free for 9 years and counting.

However, I am almost completely impotent. Viagra doesn't work for me. In addition I have very little sensation. Haven't tried Cialis yet. Women will tell you you can still have great sex without an erection??? Hard to say which is worse no erection or no sensation. The longer you go without sex, the less important it becomes to you. You can't believe you ever thought with the "little head".

I would strongly suggest you have the surgery because it works.
On the other hand I would thoroughly investigate whatever new techniques are out there just so you are mentally fully committed to the surgery.

If I had to go through this again, I would do some serious
therapy to be better able to accept a "no more sex" outcome.
This can really beat you up emotionally and you need to know how to get yourself through it.

My sincere best wishes for a successful outcome and a speedy recovery.

lickrolaine · Oct 8, 2004

Hope you have a speedy and full recovery!

r2d2 · Oct 12, 2004

re impotence

There is a procedure that is currently in use, for anyone that is having their prostate removed, called nerve sparing. The nerves that control erections run down both sides of the prostate. Years ago when men had their prostate removed the surgeons also removed these nerves. This resulted in 100% impotence. Now, when the prostate is removed, these nerves are spared. This greatly improves the odds of you regaining all your functions. This could take up to a year before it will start working again but the odds are now with you. You must also remember though that you will be dry. The feeling of orgasm is still the same. Here is a link for anyone who wants additional information.
http://healthlink.mcw.edu/article/950309183.html

banshie · Oct 12, 2004

Re: Nerve Sparing Technique

clipper said:
I would strongly suggest you have the surgery because it works.

Yes surgery works, but in the nine years since you had your procedure other techniques have become much, much better. For early stage PC it seems that surgery and brachytherapy (and some other radiotherapies) are equivalent in terms of the cure rate. The side-effects from surgery can be more severe, as you would, perhaps, agree.

r2d2 · Oct 22, 2004

dry orgasm

I am sorry I have taken so long to reply to the latest question, but I have been in the hospital for my surgery and I have just been home for a few days now. To answer your question, yes you will get the feeling of orgasm, however no ejaculate will come out. Remember the purpose of the prostate is to add fluid to the sperm. Along with the removal of the prostate are the seminal vesicles that are attached to the prostate as well. These vesicles produce the sperm which the prostate then adds fluid to. Once these items are removed you no longer have the ability to produce sperm or the fluid. As long as the nerve sparing procedure works, you should be able to achieve erections and orgasm but as I said in previous posts, this could take up to a year to recover.
As far as myself. It has been 1 week since my surgery and I still feel as if I have been hit by a truck, today a little less so. I am going to be bagging it for another 2 weeks while my urethra heals and then I will return to the urologist for its removal in early November. I may require adult diapers for a short period of time until I regain control of my bladder and the reports are very favourable that I will regain complete control.
I will keep you informed of my progress and if anyone has any questions, do not hesitate to ask.

banshie · Oct 22, 2004

r2d2

I wish you a speedy recovery from your surgery. From what I here from others who have been through it, it may take a little time but soon you will feel normal again.

Regarding dry orgams, I have had a couple and I can attest to the fact that they are still good. The only negative was the psychological aspect of not "shooting my load", but all other sensations were intact. Since I had brachtherapy rather than surgery, my ejaculate has returned, although it is less than before and has a somewhat different consistency (more watery).

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