Biological recurrence definition

User

Posted 07 May 2020 at 17:57

I don't deny that there were some sleepless nights when our area dropped usPSA and went to <0.1, particularly as J had already had a recurrence and was post salvage treatment. But we did get used to it and now it just seems normal, as if that was how it has always been. I guess that as time goes on, everyone has to learn to live with being someone who has had cancer that may come back and usPSA prolongs the agony of PSA test anxiety. Lots of cancers don't have a quick reference tool to give early warning that it may be recurring and those patients all have to learn to live with it.

The 2019 docs I was looking at yesterday said that something like 60% of men with BCR never go on to develop an actual recurrence and that salvage RT shouldn't be offered unless there are signs of problems other than just rising PSA

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

User

Posted 07 May 2020 at 18:38

Peter

My post op PSA was 0.03 with a good chance of recurrence, so to me, having a two decimal point test gave me an indication of where I was going with no surprises. I have an attitude of if I can change a situation I will and if I can't I won't worry about it.

I understand not everyone will cope with that and as John often says ignorance is bliss.

Some interesting info there Lyn.

Bill

A grain of sugar weighs 625,000 nanograms.

Thanks Chris

User

Posted 07 May 2020 at 19:21

Quote:

colwickchris;239020

A grain of sugar weighs 625,000 nanograms.

Thanks Chris

I'm with you on this Chris. I think useful in certain circumstances.

If you have undetectable for several tests you begin to get confidence in the assay. I would think if other parts were secreting psa you wouldn't get undetected for many tests. So unless there is infection or something else involved a small rise is more significant

Cheers

Bill

Edited by member 07 May 2020 at 19:35 | Reason: Typo

User

Posted 07 May 2020 at 19:49

Some that I've picked up...

Luton and Dunstable hospital measures all PSA samples to 0.01

Royal Berks (Reading) measures post-prostatectomy patients to 0.004, and all others to 0.1

Mount Vernon measures to 0.1 (no prostatectomy patients).

Hillingdon Hospitals measures post-prostatectomy patients to 0.01 (externally), and all others to 0.1

The example at The FOPS, if I recall correctly (and I was distracted during this question), was someone G9 or 10 (can't recall) who's gone from 0.1 to 0.2, but without knowing the speed this happened from more precision, it wasn't possible to advise on the urgency of followup treatment, and hence if the patient should go on to hormone therapy now or not.

User

Posted 07 May 2020 at 21:31

Andy

At Nottingham my pre diagnosis tests were 6.9 ,7.7 but that's how they were reported, they may have been tested to two decimal points. All my post treatment tests have been to two decimal points.

Would it add quite a bit of additional work load to the labs if they had to sort samples into standard tests and super sensitive tests ?

On another site a member mentioned that the PSA test envelope requested an ultra sensitive test.

From my visit to the Christie a couple of years ago they only test to one decimal point although the prof there did say he preferred the two decimal point test.

Thanks Chris

User

Posted 08 May 2020 at 02:52

The premier cancer hospital in Britain, the Royal Marsden, only tests PSA to 0.04, and my reading was <0.04 when I was tested there about a year ago. All my subsequent tests here in Coventry have been <0.1 so should I be worried? 😉😂😷

Cheers, John.

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