Hi everyone, My husband Ken, was diagnosed November 2010 PSA 6.4 Gleason 3+ 4
Prostatectomy February 2011, Positive margins.
2014 - PSA 0.5
2014 - 37 sessions of radiation on prostate bed.
October 2016 heart attack. Has 2 metal stent
July 2017 PSA 8.7 Intermediate aggressive cancer.
He had an Axumin pet scan, showing 2 lymph nodes in pelvic area. September 2017 Firmagon, plus zytiga and prednisone. December switched to Lupron. PSA 0.1
Conclusion, during our nice cruise vacations to the Bahamas we talked and he decided to do chemotherapy. Appointment with Medical Oncologist on Friday.
May God give him the strength to make it once again through another tough one.
Our faith keeps us very positive.
Best wishes to you all.
Sincerely,
Erika
Written by
Chiquis
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Please know we are all praying for the two of you! The two of you are not alone! As the song states, “people like us we have to stick together!” We are here not only for Ken, but also for you Erika. I do not know where any of us would be without the strength of our caregivers.
So happy that you were able to do a cruise. Let’s hope that after the chemo is over you could tell us about your next cruise.
I still do Intermittent Fasting from 9pm to 1pm the next day. I'm on Metformin 500mg 2x/day and that has anti-cancer action.
With a PSA at 0.1, he has the window to get fitter, if needed. My marathon fitness staved off the peripheral neuropathy. I did 15 Taxotere sessions in 2015 and PSA went from 840 to 0.7
I'm trying to inform myself on what to do to help him with the side effects. This website link helps a lot. Thank you. He's not running as much as you do but he is still trying to exercise 4 times a week when he's not to tired.
He's very positive and feeling confident that this is the way to go.
We are here on this forum to share our experiences and hopefully assist another "brother" in theirs.
Btw, after a rather overindulgent 2017 Holiday eating, my last PSA went from 0.2 to 0.5 in a month and I'm a bit freaked out. My nadir was a 0.1 from two months ago
I've now increased the fast from 7pm to 1pm for 18 hrs and am really boosting my whole grains, fruits and veggies. I sip tomato, curry, veggie broth whilst fasting.
I have a MedOnc appt this Friday and will discuss it with him. I did 30 months of ADT (Lupron and Casodex) and asked to stop - 03/31/17 was my last shot- so as to not encourage castrate resistance.
Fyi, I was on Netflix and watched "The C Word" and it is worth the time
It's hard not to indulge during the holidays. It seems you are back on track again. Thank you for sharing your amazing story. I was also touched by just watching the trailer of the Cword. Hope everything goes well on Friday's appointment.
Hey, I just saw that you replied to that post from a week ago. MedOnc told me to not to hurt myself with the fasting and he is going to restart ADT when it gets to 2.
The PSA has already doubled twice in 2 months 0.1 to 0.2 to 0.5. Testosterone is up to 86 - which was a part of the plan.
I'm trying something more extreme and will report back in Feb the effect it had or not on the PSA,
I did a tomato, veggie, curry broth, black coffee and some diet green tea. The hunger pangs fade esp if you're busy. I still worked 6 days week thru the chemos.
I hope my husband can make it through chemotherapy as well as you did. He's a planner, his job requires a lot of concentration and meetings. Your story is encouraging.
We set my chemo day on Wednesday so that my Thursday & Friday were good days due to the steroids that were given just before the chemo. My weekend could then be my down days if I needed them. Never missed any work out of 6 docetaxel treatments. My side effects included fatigue, neuropathy in my toes, shortness of breath and fluid retention (lympodema) in my legs. Each of us will react differently. I was more afraid of the side effects than actually had difficulty dealing with them. Best wishes on this next step and keep your eyes on the horizon
I just started my second chemo, taxotere. Tolerated the first one very well, just a couple of fatigue days and taste buds shot. But my Psa went from 46 to 29, so something's working. Everybody reacts differently. I've had just about zero side effects from Lupron - some guys react bad. Also taxotere - some guys get horrible side effects. No way you can tell until you do it. Best wishes on your journey. Try to enjoy life as much as you can - it's still a beautiful world.
Thank you, I'm glad you are tolerating the chemo well. Taxotere was mentioned by the MD. Also he said Jevtana is less aggressive. But of course it is not the MD's decision or my husband's. It's what the insurance will cover. The side effects he has with ADT is hot flashes and cramping in the legs. We will see how he will react to chemotherapy.
I pray your psa continues to drop. I can't agree more with you, life is beautiful.
Good luck with Ken's treatment. It seems that chemo - or at least Taxotere which many men here use - isnt as bad as its reputation.
I had my first infusion of taxotere last Friday, Im no marathon man like Randy Kam but I have continued to walk 6.5 km each morning and lift weights each night. So far only problem is that it it feels like I have a lining on inside of my mouth and tounge. But I started rinsing my mouth with salt water every hour or so and its much better.
Like everything else we deal with - take a positive attitude and you will be much better off.
I will have my 6th (and final for now) chemo infusion (Docetaxel and Carboplatin) on 1/9. Please see my bio for treatment history.
Some recommendations to minimize side effects:
1. Ice hands and feet to minimize risk of peripheral neuropathy. Med Onc also recommends daily oral 100mg B6.
2. Med Onc uses Dexamethasone (steroid) the day before, the day of, and the day after infusion.
3. Receive a dose of Aloxi before each infusion to prevent nausea and it works.
4. Leave infusion with On Body Injector of Neulasta, to boost white blood cells.
5. Take Claritin for 6 days, beginning day before infusion, to minimize bone pain from Neulasta.
6. Use Biotene products (toothpaste, mouth wash, etc.) to moderate mouth soreness.
All in all, this has not been too bad. Main side effect has been severe fatigue on days 3-5 after infusions. Taking Wisconsin American Ginseng to minimize fatigue (Google for a Mayo Clinic trial).
I also had a port implanted before chemo and it makes the process much easier.
This chemo has worked for me--PSA at start 10.8 and .7 after 4 cycles. Liver mets fewer and smaller.
Best wishes. Never Give In.
Mark, Atlanta
I wish you the best going through chemotherapy. Many of us here have done with success. I was very scared for my first infusion because I didn't know what to expect. It turned out to not be nearly as difficult as I anticipated. I wouldn't call it a picnic, but the side effects are well tolerated by most people. There was really only around 5 difficult days druing each cycle. I never even needed the anti-nausea meds I had. I actually enjoyed the difficulty at times, thinking about how much harder it is on the cancer than on me, knowing I was fighting it. There was a positive psychological apsect to it: knowing you are doing something to fight the cancer. Doing chemotherapy provided me with a focus of getting through each cycle, step by step and watching my response as my PSA went down really helped me to see it was working. I actually missed having that focus when chemotherapy was over. Not that I wanted more of it, but there were some positive aspects to it for me.
One thing that was important for me was to take Prednisone for at least the first 10 days. I tried without it and it was very difficult. So I would recommend that.
Hope all goes well, keep us posted on the progress and remember to call on us for support when you need it.
I keep a daily log of my weight, sleep pattern and how I feel during the day. Helps a lot. Taxotere (docetaxel - why do all of these have two names? Confusing!) seems to be the go-to for prostate cancer. It's a synthetic now - derivative of the yew tree. I shoot a yew-wood longbow so know a bit about the tree. Except for the berries, all parts are highly toxic. Before they synthesized it, they were asking people with ornamental yew trees in their yards to collect the clippings for processing. Your daily bit of useless information.
Just started my second taxotere chemo. First round dropped the PSA from 46.05 to 29.91 (the oncologist had told me not to expect any drop from the first round so this is good!) and the Alk Phos (I have bone metasizing) from 133 to 92, which is back in normal. I have a bone scan scheduled for next week which will tell the full story, but it looks like the taxotere is working!! Since the ADT was kind of a flop, this is very encouraging.
NEVER give up!! Remember, mental attitude is the key.
Chemocare.com uses generic drug names in all descriptions of drugs. Taxotere is the trade name for docetaxel. In some cases, health care professionals may use the trade name taxotere when referring to the generic drug name docetaxel.
Drug type: Docetaxel is an anti-cancer ("antineoplastic" or "cytotoxic") chemotherapy drug. This medication is classified as a "plant alkaloid," a "taxane" and an "antimicrotubule agent."
Your stories and experiences are very encouraging. Thank you all so much for the information. I'm definitely taking notes. My thoughts are with all of you.
Very wise decision indeed. Hope he will do the treatment as a combo. That is chemo with lupron or zytiga which is more synergistic, with significant long term survival benefits ( STAMPEDE, CHAARTED and LATITUDE Trials ). Hope you all know how to avoid the common side effects associated with chemotherapy.
My best wishes for your success in the chosen treatment regimen!
I have been on Lupron (Eligard, generic) for 6 years and I did have hot and cold flashes for about 6 months, but that is no longer a problem. My PSA went to 0.00 and has stayed there for for 6 years. My Gleason was 4+3=7 and my PSA was 72. I have metastases in the lymph nodes and bones. My life pretty normal and I can do most things that any 72 year old can do. I wish your husband well and keep asking questions. Also follow a doctor that you trust.
Hi Chiquita, don't be afraid of chemo. I had 1/ cycles over 8 months 2015-May 2016. No probs. It was going so well I asked for more! MO said I'm not here to kill you, I am only interested in killing the cancers! And boy she did. Xxxx
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