Hi all just wanted to share some thoughts & see what others are upto.
I gave up smoking 11yrs ago but it didn't stop me from getting PC, I know we are all different but I have an identical twin who still smokes but as yet has not developed PC.
I use to tell myself if I ever got incurable cancer I would start smoking again as I use to enjoy it but it was the money & savings I gave up for, so I figure now what the hell.
So what do you think do you still smoke, did you smoke or would you go back to smoking, I also figure with a PSA doubling time of 4weeks Im going to die of PC long before smoking kills me.
Cheers
Gary
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Chubby42
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I never smoked (except weed), but it's an interesting conversation because it makes you think about life and death in practical rather than theoretical terms. In theory, it would always be better to quit smoking since it has been proven to cause a number of illnesses which shorten your life. On average, you would live longer if you quit, but you have to live long enough for that to be a factor. Radiation and chemotherapy increase the risk of secondary cancer, but the doctors figure that the short term benefit outweighs the long term risk.
Of course you might live longer than you think and then smoking could be a factor in your health. Even if it doesn't kill you directly, it could contribute to a loss in quality of life.
I guess like everything else, it just comes down to a personal decision on your part.
It does come down to personal preference / choice I guess I have certainly heard of people smoking weed while having cancer and weed may also have a medical benefit for some I guess, I feel if my quality of life was affected by PC to a point that smoking couldn't make it any worse and I may even get some enjoyment out of it over my last years.
Okay one thing Radiation and Chemo are poison to your body, just like alcohol or flouride, 0ver 80% of people who receive this treatment for cancer DIE shortly after because their CELLS cannot regenerate fast enough to fight against imminent cell death causing agents. Thats the short version, CANCER of any type is more a psychological killer than it is physical, wait wait, I know the body is affected horribly by the invasion of the dying cells, however if your brain, mind, psyche is severely diminished then guess what is going to happen to the body and its periphery of organs dependent mainly upon the super highway of the spine and the brain which can combat it? cells are controlled by electronic or magnetic information transmitted by your brain, guess what information is produced by cells to combat sick cells, cancer cells, inflammation ?? Radiation. Anytime you have positive and negative electrons protons and neutrons combined the product is Radiation. The second highest form of energy to LIGHT.
Sorry to disagree here, but 80% of people who get radiation or chemo DO NOT die shortly after. What scientific literature is this claim based on? Please limit your content to factual statements backed up with science. There are people on this forum that are struggling to survive and depending on proven treatments.
Radiation and chemotherapy are only approved for treatment of diseases after they are proven in clinical trials to extend life.
> "Anytime you have positive and negative electrons protons and neutrons combined the product is Radiation."
That's wrong. All matter is made of atoms, all of which are made of protons, electrons, and neutrons. Only a small percentage of total atomic structures are radioactive. Of them, only a small number give off large amounts of radiation, which is to say, many "photons" per unit of time.
> " The second highest form of energy to LIGHT."
That's also wrong. Energy is directly proportional to the amplitude of the electromagnetic waves and inversely proportional to the wavelength. Light is not the highest wavelength by any means. Ultraviolet, x-rays, and gamma rays are much more energetic.
All of this has been known for many decades. You must not believe random theories that somehow sound appealing. You need to get a basic book on chemistry, high school level will do, and learn the science. It will be difficult at first, but after a couple of months of studying you'll find that the world is much more understandable than you thought.
Chubby with a PSA doubling time of 4 weeks first I would try a new Onco and if that doesn't work then I would go with porterhouse steaks, fries, onion rings, eggs, double cheeseburgers, milkshakes, pizza, smoking,...might as well go out with a bang...an Onco at the Mayo Clinic told me diet might be a factor in causing PCa, but once you have it eat whatever you want...some up here will tell you this is crazy...but there are no double blind studies that prove diet will prolong over all survival.
Gary, What treatments are you on, and what ones have you done? What is your current psa, with a psa doubling time of 4 weeks it may be time to change treatments, and there is a lot to be said about having an expert oncologist who specializes in CRPC. I wish yopu the best,
Smoking isn't going to help either your health or the health of your wallet.
Doubling every four weeks is unacceptable! There has to be treatments to slow this down or stop it. Where do you live and what health plan do you have? Best wishes and luck to you! I'm sorry you are a fellow traveler here.
I agree. I think we all have to keep in mind that quality, not just quantity of life is important. Every treatment decision we make has to consider both quantity and quality of life. Sometimes I do see a focus on living longer no matter what. We all want to hear "fight fight fight" but there comes a time for everyone when that is no longer an option. We have to make sure we are accepting of people's individual choices regarding when it's time to stop or to focus purely on having the best quality of life for whatever is left. This is not a failure on the part of the individual, just the inevitable progression. We should make sure we continue to support those that either can not or choose not to keep fighting.
Well I don't have private health cover I am on the NHS my treatments are still paid for but it is just what is available on the NHS.
I have just had my second Chemo cycle with HT, before that the radiotherapy failed and before that the prostatectomy failed.
My Gleeson score was 4+3 and just before Chemo my PSA was 8.0.
I have yet to show any mets actually scans didn't show anything when my PSA was 2.7 & 4 so we went ahead with Chemo & HT, I am in the Stampede trial Arm K, which is Chemo HT & metformin.
Olman i wish someone could show me anything that could slow the PSA doubling time but so far nothing has worked.
I had PSA of 3.3 and rising fast following prostatectomy and all scans were clear in Canada. Got a referral to a Berlin hospital for a PSMA CAT scan and found two small tumors in lower abdomen. PSA was till rising and at 12 went on Estrogen patches and Metformin and in six weeks PSA dropped to 2.1 and expect lower in my next blood work. Now my radiation guy wants to do full pelvic radiatiin for six weeks rather than see how Estrogen & Metformin play out on longer term. I am concerned but maybe he his right to recommend 'belt and braces' approach.
Chubby, I went through your profile posted in 2016. You have gone through an aggressive course of some good treatments for your medium risk ( GS 7 ) PCa. Your current problem remains to be the short PSA doubling time and you do not complain about anything else for the moment. Please don't dwell on a trivial and unimportant issue such as smoking. Even if tomorrow is going to be the DOOMS DAY, we have today to do something. If you can afford to do try different chemohormonal combinations, stronger AR inhibitors, LuPSMA treatment and anything worthwhile suggested by our wise friends in the group. If there is a will there is a way. Please stay away from any negative ideas.
Wish good luck to find a way out of your problem.
Sisira
Don't restart that horrible habit of smoking. Instead you should focus on treating your entire body through careful diet and exercise. Unfortunately this group has a few members who spread false information in order to justify their own unhealthy living habits. Your cancer may not be curable but it can be treated for an extended period of time. Smoking, eating red meats, eggs and dairy products are extremely counterproductive in your battle against cancer. Is a cigarette and steak worth a year of your life? Only you can answer that question. Good luck.
Thanks Sisira & nameless good points from you both, its hard to remain positive when everything ive tried so far has failed, went 6 months with no dairy, sugar, red meats had lots of fruit & veg with other suppliments which didnt slow anything down.
Im still open to suggestions like BIRM. Which ill try after my Chemo.
BIRM might work...diet won't do anything....1 month ago my PSA was .2...my last reading 3 days ago was <.1 and during the last month I have been eating plenty of steak and eggs. I did add Thunder God Vine a month ago to my supplements and maybe that accounts for the drop but meat and eggs did not have a negative effect
Hi guys thanks for your replies as I said this is still my first Chemo & HT so I still have some options down the road that hopefully will give me a bit longer than 4yrs but as some have said there must be some quality of life to consider which doesn't mean I won't be trying it just means getting to the point when one says fuck it.
I'm 65 I was diagnosed with Met PC aggresive only 3mths ago, Psa went from 135- 200- 400 in a month. ADT/Docetax combo brought it down to 6 for the first 3 rounds round 4 it jumped to 14 and started round 5 two days ago with Psa 35 so that's Psa 6-14-35 in 42 days I know it can be demoralizing. I join this site yesterday looking for inspiration stayed up till 5 am writing a long winded bio that I cant figure out how to up to upload. I've been Highly addicted to Nic.but always fighting to use less tried everything except shoving tobacco up my ass. I understand, but I cant accept when you say "fuck it ". We cant accept everything that comes to mind, our brain is insane especially right now you cant believe anything that thing is telling you. We need to find a way to be here now and savor every breath (especially if it has smoke in it HaHa). Being negative and bummed may be worse for us than smoking I don't know. Lets try to focus on passion, learning, rediscovering beauty, and figure out how to devour every moment regardless of how we feel.
Hi Miki yea it was just a thought at the time i haven't started smoking was prob looking for an excuse too, I hope your PSA drops again too m8, mine is coming down really slowly and after the Op & radiotherapy not working i was beginning to think nothing will, trying to live a normal life and take each day at a time with the wife family & friends including work college's who are all very supportive.
Hi You do know that Smoking literally does not give you cancer of any type right?? no sir its the chemicals that are used to process tobacco that do that, yes there are some natural toxins that can cause you major health issues when abused but nothing like the over 300 chemicals they use during the processing of tobacco, oh cant for get the Gene manipulation of the plant to grow it exponentially. check it before 1920 look at the stats on lung cancer emphezema and CHF due to tobacco, its practically non existent and its not for lack of detection due to tech ability, hell any scientist or sage worth his salt could put 2 n 2 together to know the effects of heroin, coca, or tobacco was over a 1000 years ago, hell how the hell yo think they dealt with those trade route issues, and that was over stimulants and pure drugs, poppy schrooms, cocaine, all had their day long before we seen it. Just sayin.
The claim that tobacco does not cause cancer by itself is incorrect. There are plenty of articles on this. Here's one: livescience.com/7914-warnin...
Here's a quote from the article: "good ol’ natural tobacco, particularly when burned, has upwards of 40 known or probable carcinogens that trump any harm done by additives." and also this: "tobacco still has those same wonderful heart-stopping qualities causing higher blood pressure, higher cholesterol levels, and higher risk of artery clotting and stroke"
Here's another article from the American Cancer Society:
A quote from that article when talking about the hazardous substances produced by smoking: "Most of the substances come from the burning tobacco leaves themselves, not from additives included in cigarettes (or other tobacco products)." Emphasis is mine.
As I understand it, your claim that lung cancer was far less common before 1920 is true, however it's probably not for the reason you think it is. Smoking really increased enormously in the U.S. starting in the early 1900's.
Here's some information about the history of lung cancer:
Only 10% of people diagnosed with lung cancer are under 50. That was the approximate life expectancy in 1911. The average age at diagnosis today is 70. Living longer plus the increase in smoking may explain why there are more people with lung cancer today.
Nicotine itself is a poison. Less than 1mg/kilo of body weight is enough to kill a human. There's enough nicotine in 5 cigarettes to do the job.
Gary, if the '42' in your moniker refers to your age at diagnosis I'd suggest that you continue to refrain from smoking. You probably have a lot of decent years left. Smoking messes up a lot of systems in the body, short of causing lung cancer.
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HDR boost Brachytherapy + IMRT
Don’t know where I go from here.
