Worth the trip to Mayo-Rochester?

[ChickenWrangler]

Howdy all! I was officially diagnosed with prostate cancer this past week in Germany. I have a PSMA, MRI, blood work and Biopsy (available next week) in hand upon my return. It looks pretty severe with the prostate cancer wrapping around my rectum, multiple bone lesions, a few lymph nodes, and possibly about to enter my bladder…so not what I was hoping for let alone aware of. I am from a smaller community and an hour or so from Chicago, or five hours from Mayo-Rochester. Is it worth the trip to go to Mayo? I have seen that they are number one in the nation. Perhaps keeping it local is best? Any advice will be welcome. I have books waiting upon my arrival. Many thanks!

[GP24]

I would trust Maha Hussain in Chicago feinberg.northwestern.edu/f... You will have to see doctors frequently therefore I would not drive to Mayo.

[Tall_Allen]

Maha Hussain is at Northwestern.

[Brad70]

I went to Mayo Rochester with Gleason 10 stage 4 PCa. I am doing great now. I highly recommend them.

[MoonRocket]

First, I'd try Maha Hussain. If she's not available, then one of her peers. You'll want to be as close as possible to your doctor.

[EdBar]

Highly recommend Dr. Sartor at Mayo. I used to drive 8 hours to Tulane to see him twice a year and I’ve flown to Mayo last year to see him. He and my local oncologist work together on my care.

Ed

[maley2711]

while face to face consults are the best, IMHO........phone /video visits are now a viable option when seeking out opinions from the real specialists in PCa MO.

[NanoMRI]

I flew to Europe for imaging not available in US and had surgery in Belgium. I latter learned could have done that surgery at Mayo Rochester - but not the imaging. A fellow warrior friend flies from Florida to Mayo in Rochester.

[TeleGuy]

Note that centers of excellence are likely to want to have a look at your biopsy slides themselves, and to do their favorite genetic tests on them. See if they will let you take some unstained slides home with you.

[Huzzah1]

I have a local MO in ATL who did his fellowship at MD Anderson. I also made the trip to Houston to see them as well. I can now send them an email to confirm or compare treatments. In your situation, I would get the best local MO and also make the trip to Mayo to "get on the books".

[Timmer1967]

Like you I was diagnosed young, in my case at 51 years old with Gleason 9. I chose to go to Mayo Clinic even though it is a 6-hour drive for me. I have not regretted this decision and have been traveling to Mayo for 6 years now. At times I have had extended stays in Rochester Minnesota. There are excellent accommodations for example Hope Lodge did not charge me for lodging when I had radiation therapy. Otherwise I have discovered modestly priced, good hotels and excellent restaurants so the trip now can in some instances be enjoyable. Early on in my treatment, I consulted with Dr Hussain in Chicago. She would be an excellent second option. In my particular case she recommended a less aggressive approach which did not appeal to me at the time. Because I am relatively young and healthy, I sought out what I felt was the best healthcare option regardless of the driving distance. My insurance pays the same if I am at Mayo clinic or at a local resource. I chose Mayo clinic. All the best to you. If you have any questions regarding Mayo clinic or about accommodations there please reach out to me and I will be happy to share with you what I know.

[SpencerBoy11]

Don't know, but when I tried to get a Lupron shot there from my prostate cancer, I was treated I crap. Also went to Mayo in Pheonix and dropped them too. They don't really seem to care about you as an individual, just a #.

[RoseDoc]

I have been treated at Mayo for over 7 years now and have nothing but good things to say about them. I do have an MO in my area but go to Mayo every 6 months. It is worth the trip, you aren't that far away. I've seen Dr. Kwon. He is a caring and humble physician. He is aggressive. Though I have not seen him personally, I have hard good things about Dr. Sartor who is also at Mayo.

I recommend that you go there for an opinion. It is an amazing place.

[dk73]

we are with Northwestern Medical System out of Chicago. Excellent care with a great team. We never knew Mayo was an option when we started all this in 2016. But we are happy with our care

[fast_eddie]

Mayo didn't offer the treatment option I went with in 2016. Evidently, they do now, at least at Rochester facility. I went with full gland rather than focal ablation. Surgeon recommended that and I agreed that it was the more thorough option.

mayoclinic.org/medical-prof...