Jeff Z and Sue live in New Jersey, USA . He was 47 when he was diagnosed on October
2, 2008. His initial PSA was 3.8 ng/ml, his Gleason Score was 6 and he was staged
T1c. He is undecided as to his choice of treatment was . Here is his story.
Well
it has been five days since I found out I have Prostate Cancer. At 47 I am young
to have PC. I am in very good shape and have a great life.
I have been
advised that at my age that the Radical surgery is really the only way to "cure"
or rid the Cancer. I agree and am actively looking for a Doc in the NY/NJ area
to do my surgery. My wife and I have an good sex life and obviously that is an
area of concern so I will focus my efforts on a Doc who uses the nerve sparing
technique.
From reading over the summaries it appears that there are significant
ED issues with all the surgical techniques. I guess the most important thing is
that I rid myself of the Cancer and deal with the other issues at that time.
I
would love any advise or feedback that anyone would share. I will add that I am
scared to death.
Later:
I have decided to have a open RP at Memorial Sloan Kettering in NYC.
I
met with my surgeon on 10/17 and feel very comfortable with his team and his ability.
He performs 6-8 per week and has done so for many years. He was very thorough
in his explanation and though he performs both robotic and open he feels in my
case that open would serve my needs better. I am scheduled for a Trans Rectal
MRI on Nov 17th, if anyone else has has that done please email with the details.
My
surgery is scheduled for Dec 4th. The Dr. feels confident that with the early
diagnosis and low PSA level that there is less than a 1% chance that it has spread.
I am extremely encouraged even though I understand clearly that there are negative
side effects. I would rather deal with those than go through the pain that my
father goes through (metastatic bone from PC) daily. He has made it to 80 (RP
at 67 spread to seminal ves.) I don't want to be in the same predicament at 57.
Thanks
for all the great responses, they are all welcomed and the encouragement much
needed at this point.
Jeff
Jeff's e-mail address is: jdangelmajer@yahoo.com
