Decided to have RT.

[Aiden14]

Decided to have RT. Fiducial markets this week. Begin 9 weeks of therapy about 2 weeks after. Any suggestions, recommendations, etc. Decided 9 was at a bit lower radiation then 5 weeks.

[Tall_Allen]

I did it in just 5 treatment - called SBRT. There are some advantages to doing it in fewer treatments. The biologically effective dose (BED) for killing cancer cells is lower for 9 weeks than 5 weeks, and is lower for 5 weeks than 5 treatments. BUT the biologically effective dose (BED) for killing healthy cells (i.e., toxicity) is lowest for SBRT, middle for 5 weeks, and highest for 9 weeks. The erectile function preservation seems to be best for SBRT too (which is why I chose it).

[Aiden14 in reply to Tall_Allen]

Thanks for the input.

[Aiden14]

Thanks

[tallguy2]

You'll do fine. Good luck!

[Aiden14 in reply to tallguy2]

Thanks

[cesanon]

Before you pull the trigger you should consider getting a second opinion from someone who uses SBRT. It's probably cheaper as well as better(or at least more targeted)

[Aiden14 in reply to cesanon]

Thanks

[Don_1213]

I completed 45 treatments (25 prostate and pelvic bed, 20 "boost" directly to the prostate, IG/IMRT/ARC) March 5th. I'm also on 2 years of Lupron ADT. I was rated G9 by 2 pathologists and G10 by one. So G9.5... I'm 72, will be 73 in a month.

My PSA was undetectable 6 weeks after the completion of radiation. I had minimal side effects during treatment (a bit of urinary urgency combined with restriction, 2x Flomax fixed that up, and some bowel looseness forward the end of the week the last few weeks of treatment. Imodium fixed that up.)

As of now, no side effects attributable to the radiation treatments.

While SBRT may be wonderful, it's not yet the current standard of care for high risk PCa. Mine was done on the same machine SBRT is given on, and the increased number of treatments allows for greater diversity of locating the treating beam to lower the dose healthy tissue will receive.

It sounds as if your oncologist is offering the standard of care. It's called the standard of care for a reason.

BTW, at 8 weeks post treatment, I completed a drive from NJ to CA to visit with our first grandchild.. no radiation related problems on the trip..

You'll find many people who recommend the treatment they've had, it is a confirmation that that made the right choice.

I won't do that, I'll just tell you my personal experience with my treatment and the results so far.

I'd also suggest reading ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articl...

There are a number of other recent studies that report the same thing.

If I was asked for an opinion, and please take my confirmation bias into account, you'll do fine following the treatment your oncologist recommended. But that's only an opinion and shouldn't be mistaken for a recommendation.

Good luck! Do drink the water and empty your bowel as instructed.

[Aiden14]

Thanks for the info. Continued good luck and enjoy the grandkid. They are great therapy and keep you young.

[tucker_man]

I was in a similar boat as you: G6, 1 core 60%, but genomics pushed me into intermediate favorable category. I could have gone AS, but at 58 felt it wasn't a matter of if it would need to be treated but when so I opted for RT. However, I did a lot of research on the 9 wk vs. 4 wk vs. SBRT and my conclusion was different than yours. SBRT didn't have enough data yet for my tastes but the 4 wk treatment had better outcomes than 9 wk--similar side effects and same outcome, but less time. Therefore it made no sense to go 9 wks. Unless you live next door to the treatment center it's a pain in the ass to travel to get treatments which for me was 1/2 hour drive each way for a 10 minute treatment. You'll do what feels most comfortable, but you seriously need to do more comparisons between moderately hypofractionated IMRT (20 sessions, total 60 Gy) vs. the traditional 45 treatments. There is no reason to go to 45 treatments.

[Aiden14]

Thanks for the info.

[Stellabell]

Everyone has an answer for you but you chose well. Some small side effects occurred for me, urinary urgency, loose stools for weeks 3-6 but all manageable. Still just 4 weeks out from the final treatment so who knows what will come to pass. Get lots of exercise, stay positive and believe in your decision.

[Aiden14]

Thanks for the encouragement.

[RonnyBaby]

I had 9 weeks of external beam treatment (the max) with 5 weeks (concurrent) of pelvic nodal involvement.

After 18 months (post treatment) there are no major side effects to report, although I underestimated the fatigue that followed.

You should tolerate it well, as far as I know ....

[Aiden14 in reply to RonnyBaby]

Thanks for the info.