The knowledge on this site is very helpful, I look at this every week. Since my last post I’ve had second opinion from my first biopsy U of M doctor said my Gleason score is 7 not 6 what my urologist read originally. I’m still monitoring my PSA
8.8 4/20/20
7.36 9/10/20
(8.17 2/16/21).
7.33 5/20/21
The question should I continue monitoring or have surgery, my family thinks I’m crazy not having surgery.
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Leeway
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At the very least, you should be able to confidently tell your family that surgery is not URGENT at this point. So rather than be definitive about AS or RP you can sit on the fence safely for some time (which of course if long enough, sitting the fence will be AS, lol).
That article is a must-read, IMHO, for men newly diagnosed....and men who are considering a biopsy. Doubt that many Docs discuss what this article highlights!!
I agree with the replies below. Also you need more info on the Gleason 7...Is is 3+4 or 4+3? 3+4 is not as bad as 4+3 and closer to 3+3 which is what the first diagnosis was. Also what is the percentage of 4? i.e. 10% or more than 50%
Also how many cores was the 7 detected? Different parts of the prostate or one spot?
Have you have any imaging like MRI, if so what is your Pi-rads score?
I'm kinda in the same situation as you, 3+4 and PSA about the same as yours. I'm still AS.
The '4 ' was only 1/5 of one core, only 10% and no image (well Pi-rads 3 which usually indicates no cancer). Subsequent biopsy 16 needles instead of the usual 12 and no cancer...
But they think it is still in there and pressuring me to do something but I am still holding off.
Will do another MRI in Sept and check PSA again then. But this has been going on since 2012 when PSA suddenly started jumping up. Only 64 so if I can keep this organ for another
10-15 years that will be fine with me.
So you need more info and do some more reading. Also they keep jigging the scale of the years so 10-15 years ago we would be considered a 6 but now they have upgrades it but
it is a judgement call by the pathologist whether the cells are 3 or 4 and opinions can vary.
They still don't have AI doing the diagnosing...
So don't rush and ask more questions! The more time we buy, the more treatment choices there will be so don't rush into surgery unless you feel there is no other choice.
All very good suggestions above... One, that nobody could possibly offer which path is best for you. Especially with the information provided. There is so much that goes into a proper diagnosis such as age, general health, PSA history, family history, then add test results, then compliment them with 2nd opinions, especially not from those associated with any treatment modalities. Then you may get an honest evaluation and prognosis.
One suggestion I would make is to make sure you get yourself to a Major Cancer Center, and one of Excellence! The one statistic that holds true is that experience wins in regard to cancer treatment, and those Center's of Excellence hold the very best and most experienced doctors and care teams that will help you make the best decisions. Travel if you must, but find one accessible and get to it
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