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Cheshire Chris's Treatment Thread

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User

Posted 22 Apr 2019 at 19:46

Hi Chris,

Just a word of warning.....My husband took one Tamsulosin tablet, and had a very severe adverse reaction! His blood pressure dropped very suddenly without any warning, and he collapsed onto the floor of the pub where he and a friend had gone for lunch. He has no history of blood pressure problems, and he doesn't drink, so initially it was very frightening, and very embarrassing, as he also vomitted violently! We then spent several hours in A and E until he was stabilised, and were told to stop the Tamsulosin.

Consultation with the Radiotherapists the following morning confirmed that it was almost certainly a reaction to the pills, one of the older radiographers recalled seeing it happen once early in his career, so it is obviously very unusual, but it was very frightening, and we were just very grateful it didn't happen a couple of hours earlier when he was driving back from his radiotherapy, as it really did happen very suddenly, and he still can't properly recall what happened.

User

Posted 22 Apr 2019 at 20:41

A drop in blood pressure is a known side-effect of Tamsulosin, but such a dramatic manifestation of it is, I suspect, very unusual! For me it works very well indeed.

Cheers,

Chris

User

Posted 10 May 2019 at 16:27

Ok, I've just had a PSA test 6 weeks post-RT and it's 4.6. My PSA was 32 on diagnosis, and the HT (bicalutamide) had brought it down to 13 immediately prior to RT. I guess it's good that it's now barely a third of what it was before RT.

It would have been nice if it had been even lower, but my oncologist told me that he wouldn't be too concerned about what the actual figure was as long as it had fallen. Bicalutamide doesn't block testosterone production, but only its reception, so you don't get the dramatic falls in PSA that you do with the injections that block production.

I have my follow-up appointment with my oncologist on Monday, so I'll be interested to know what he thinks. I'm hoping that the significant decline in my PSA does indicate that the RT has been successful, but I am feeling a little bit stressed now!

Chris

User

Posted 10 May 2019 at 18:19

Doing some reading I see that it's quite common for PSA readings to actually rise after RT, and that it's the nadir reading (which is generally about 18 months after treatment) that's the best indicator of successful treatment, with a value of <1 being desirable. Given my relatively high PSA of 13 immediately prior to RT I guess a value of 4.6 is pretty reasonable for 6 weeks after treatment.

Chris

User

Posted 10 May 2019 at 19:41

You understand correctly. Many oncos refuse to have PSA tests done until at least 6 months post-RT

"Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards." Soren Kierkegaard

User

Posted 10 May 2019 at 20:04

Thanks, Lyn. I know I just need to wait and see what happens over the next year or so, but I’m finding the experience slightly stressful.

Best wishes,

Chris

User

Posted 13 May 2019 at 18:12

I've just returned home from my 6-week post-RT follow-up with my oncologist. He said he's very pleased with the way that things are going, and my current PSA (4.6) is absolutely fine given my treatment history, so everything's going to carry on the way it is now as far as medication goes, with another PSA test and follow-up appointment in 6 months' time. He did say that he may consider stopping HT after 18 months rather than carrying on for two years, as originally planned.

Thus far I've had all my treatment and appointments privately, but, as mentioned previously in this thread, I've decided to retire on 1st Aug, at which point I'll lose my private medical insurance. My oncologist is therefore transferring me onto his NHS list, which he says will make no difference at all to my treatment.

So all in all, a good result. Trying to put PSA levels, etc, out of my mind for the next six months at least!

Cheers,

Chris

User

Posted 13 May 2019 at 19:17

Great news Chris, long may it continue.

Good luck.

Phil

User

Posted 13 May 2019 at 21:32

Good news all round Chris.

Ido4

User

Posted 13 May 2019 at 21:41

Nice one Chris. All the best

If life gives you lemons , then make lemonade

User

Posted 14 May 2019 at 19:37

Fantastic news Chris,

6 months of respite from appointments equals bliss.

devonmaid xx

User

Posted 11 Jun 2019 at 19:37

Well, this wasn’t in the plan...

A couple of weeks ago I had an abdominal CT scan as a routine follow-up to the nephrectomy operation where I had my left kidney removed (following my prostate MRI showing I had an unrelated kidney tumour) last year. I heard nothing from the hospital after the scan so I breezed into the consultant’s room today assuming I’d be told all was well.

It didn’t go exactly like that.

What my consultant has said is that the scan showed “a mass” near to where my kidney used to be. The radiologist has said that this is most likely to be an benign “fibrous mass” - basically scar tissue from my surgery - but he can’t rule out the possibility that it’s a tumour. My consultant said that he’d put the probability of it being a tumour at “1%”, but “just to rule it out” he wants to do another scan at the end of August and see if the mass has grown or shrunk.

I know that I need to put it out of my mind and just get on with my life for the next three months, but, gosh, I can’t help worrying about it. Does anxiety about cancer recurrence ever go away?

My consultant did say that when kidney cancer spreads it normally shows up in the lungs, and the scan showed absolutely nothing there. He also looked at a scan I had in November and the same “mass” was visible in that scan, and the radiologist didn’t comment on it then. So just an ultra-cautious radiologist this time?

Heck, I really hope I’m not in for more cancer diagnoses. I’ve really had enough of that.

Not a very happy,

Chris

User

Posted 11 Jun 2019 at 22:17

Hey Chris, just got home from my daughters 41st, then read your news. A Doc that gives a 1% chance of it being malignant is really being just like an MP in my opinion! They never like to say 100% Its benign, so just a bit of ass covering in my opinion. Get on with your life mate and don't think of it, especially after what you've been through.

Alan

User

Posted 23 Jun 2019 at 15:54

I’m in a much happier frame of mind than I was when I posted that last message. I was really concerned that the kidney cancer might have spread. I asked my consultant for another meeting about it, which I had on Thursday, and I’m feeling reassured. The radiologist looked at the scan I had post-op in October and the same anomaly is visible there, too, but it was significantly larger in October 2018 than it was in my May 2019 scan, which reinforces the view that it’s scar tissue from surgery given that it’s shrinking in size.

On the PCa front I find myself with a mild case of proctitis (a burning sensation in the rectum) once again, three months after finishing RT. Clearly a late effect of radiation, which is, I read, not uncommon. I have no other symptoms and the burning sensation is mild, so I’m not too bothered about it.

My retirement on August 1st is now only a few weeks away. All the admin stuff to get my pension(s) is complete, and I have a meeting with my financial advisor on Tuesday to go through all the details. I’m really looking forward to retiring!

Cheers,

Chris

User

Posted 23 Jun 2019 at 16:25

Chris, I am sure you will enjoy your retirement and hope it all goes smoothly for the other stuff. So pleased for you.

Funny that I was looking forward to retirement ( I’m 64 now) before the PCa hit but now I feel I need the social aspect of work and of course low and behold they give me the bullet. So I’m still looking for another position , I’m just not ready but obviously you are ready and willing and I wish you all the happiness for the future.

Its funny writing this as I feel like a newbie but I’ve been on here since beginning of 2018 and feel like I’ve known you and the regulars for ever 😆

Phil

User

Posted 23 Jun 2019 at 17:12

Thanks for the good wishes, Phil. I’ve been with my current employer for 23 years, and there have been so many rounds of redundancies that pretty much everyone I knew has gone. I recently moved to a new department in the company and, to be honest, I find the work deadly dull. I work from home anyway, so there is no social side to it. I can’t wait to retire - all sorts of plans :). I only have three more weeks of work, because I’m on holiday for a fortnight in mid July.

All the best,

Chris

User

Posted 24 Jun 2019 at 07:34

All the best for your retirement Chris. I thoroughly recommend it!

Ido4

User

Posted 24 Jun 2019 at 07:50

Have a great retirement and do all you want to do. We had to give up my oh's passion for sailing and bought a motorhome instead so new adventures are often round the corner. Life takes us in many directions - not always the ones we had in our mind. Pc has occupied most of our retirement but we have adapted to every challenge - not always easy but easier when not working and you get used to a reduced income too. Wishing a long and happy retirement

Edited by member 24 Jun 2019 at 07:51 | Reason: Not specified

User

Posted 24 Jun 2019 at 11:31

Thanks, Gilly. I'm fortunate in that I have a well-paid job, and I've been saving over a third of my salary into my pension fund for many years. The result of that is that I can retire and my net income will be almost unchanged, so I'll be able to indulge my interests.

Best wishes,

Chris

User

Posted 26 Jun 2019 at 10:12

Three months after the end of RT and I've just passed quite a lot of clear mucus, which hasn't happened since I finished RT. I believe that this is quite a common late side-effect. Does anyone have any views on whether it's something I should contact my GP or oncologist about?

Thanks,

Chris

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