Something I wrote 7 years ago about prostate cancer, the internet, patients and the prostate cancer decision making process. The more things change…the more they have stayed the same! Click here won’t you?
Two negative prostate biopsies, a Psa of 13 and taking Proscar. What to do?
Read full discussion here.
Prostate Cancer Treatment Decision more about potential side effects?
Since all of the treatments for Prostate Cancer have similar cure rates at 15 yrs many patients base their choice of treatment on the potential for side effects. For instance: If you absolutely could not tolerate total incontinence don’t choose surgery as this has the biggest risk for that complication. If you are worried that…
The “big three” in deciding what to do for your prostate cancer diagnosis.
You’ve been told you have prostate cancer and you’ve heard… that most people die “with it” instead of “from it.” You’ve heard that a friend did something and he did very well or that another friend did something and he did very poorly. You’ve read that prostate cancer is over diagnosed and over treated. You’ve…
Prostate cancer 101-A little knowledge is a dangerous thing.
Why is it that 30,ooo or so men die of prostate cancer die yearly in the U.S.? Could it be that men are lulled to sleep by generalizations about the prostate and then apply them “specifically” to themselves? Yes some prostate cancers are slow growing…but not all are. Yes some people die with their prostate…
No matter which treatment you do to treat your prostate cancer…the quality of your erection will take a hit.
Knowing this…you need to know specifically how surgery, radiation, or any other treatment will affect your erections. With this information, the specifics of your cancer, the level of importance you attach to sexual function, chance of cure and incontinence…you can smartly go about honing in on your decision. The diagram shows the nerves responsible for…
Prostate cancer? Do you know where your prostatic urethra is tonight?
Regardless of the treatment of your prostate cancer you choose…the prostatic urethra or lack thereof will impact your potential for urinary symptoms. I commonly see patients for a second opinion about what to do with the newly diagnosed prostate cancer. In most cases they have been told the diagnosis and the options. I don’t know…
The “potential”problem with treating prostate cancer with radioactive seeds.
I like radioactive seed therapy as a treatment option for prostate cancer but it is not without its faults (as are all of the treatments.) The picture on the right is the placement of the seeds in a perfect world. See how nice and uniform they are? Now on the left is the real world-not…
After a prostatectomy for prostate cancer the male urinary system resembles a female. What?
When it comes to the control of urine the male has one more defense mechanism than the female…the prostate. So when a male has his prostate removed his anatomy becomes very similar to the female. After a prostatectomy the male continence depends in a large part on the external sphincter just as a female does. This…
Prostate Cancer Decision Making Basics in Georgia.
The Overall Process That Leads Up to the Decision about Which Treatment to Pursue. The family doctor sends you to a urologist because of an elevated PSA. After a rectal exam and discussion with the urologist a biopsy is done. Your biopsy shows prostate cancer. You review and understand the significance of your PSA, the…
Prostate cancer? Do what granddaddy did? All prostate cancers are not created equally.
As the diagram above shows, there are several possible scenarios in regards to what might be found on a prostate biopsy. Just as some breast cancers are more aggressive than others, so too some prostate cancers are more aggressive than others. That is why there are over 250,000 cases of prostate cancer diagnosed a year…
When it comes to prostate cancer, cure isn’t the only factor in the decision making process.
Why? When you compare the survival rates at fifteen years regardless of the treatment chosen…it is about the same for all treatment choices. So…if you do about the same as far as curing the cancer then one begins to really look at the side effects of the various choices and what you have to go…
Dr. McHugh's Real...Prostate Cancer Second Opinion 