On Recurrence, Running & River Rocks

Anyone who has had cancer holds their breath for their regular tests, even when the pattern has been favorable. For prostate cancer survivors, when a PSA begins rising again—or even creeping up—the anxiety level creeps up with it.

That's the situation I’m facing—my PSA rising in two consecutive tests, from a .9 nadir to 1.3 to 1.5 in December (earlier post). I thought these were low and insignificant numbers until my alarmist urologist began talking “salvage therapy” and another “biopsy” and “cryotherapy” and totally freaked me out. 

His position: three rises would warrant more snipping.  He called my little creep-ups “significant.”

Really?  I didn’t want to hear it. The specter of recurrence hit me harder than the original cancer diagnosis in 2008.  Not sure why, but I got upset and depressed for about five days … until I righted that emotional ship again.

I started running more, upping my weekly mileage.  Running has always been my salvation.  I’ve been a runner since I graduated from the University of Florida, back in 1975.  I ran 13 marathons, including a Boston, two New Yorks, and three Chicagos, and covered more than 20,000 miles— a portion of which were therapeutic miles for everyday life crisis’s, large and small.

A creeping PSA qualified for self-imposed therapy. As usual, as my mileage went up, my head cleared. And when I don't feel like running, I have discovered a neat little new trick to get me out on the road.   

River rocks.

Family Guy Prostate Exam

Click here.

LOL!!!

Prostate Cancer Risk Factors You Can Control

Diet seems to be a 'smoking gun' in the development of prostate cancer, which is much more common in countries where meat and high-fat dairy are mainstays. The reason for this link is unclear.  But dietary fat, particularly animal fat from red meat, may boost male hormone levels, which may fuel the growth of prostate cells. Men who eat fewer fruits and vegetables and high-fat dairy products have higher prostate cancer risk as well.

In other words, a steady diet of greasy fat cheeseburgers -- red meat and dairy cheese -- is a terrible combo for prostate health.


While consumption of saturated fats promote the growth of prostate cancer cells, soy consumption and drinking of green tea reduce the risk, according to the Mayo Clinic.

Health News and Research reports that a U.K. Study found that eating fish, especially oily fish with Omega-3 fats helps prevent prostate cancer. Broccoli provides some protection against this type of cancer, according to a U.S. study. Beans and green peas may provide some protection too.

Study: Meat industry antibiotic prevents prostate cancer growth

When I was dazed and confused in the early days of my prostate cancer diagnosis in 2008, I kept stumbling on a theory that as men age, the presence of higher testosterone levels acts as a fuel for prostate cancer growth. It begs the question, why don't men earlier in life get prostate cancer when they are brimming with testosterone?

I'm still unclear on the answer to that question.  But a recent study shows that an antibiotic used in the meal and daily industry can turn off the testosterone receptors and simultaneously increase production of oxygen to damage the DNA in cancer cells.

This lethal combination is shown to prevent the growth of prostate cancer cells. The article is in Science Day, called Compound That Prevents the Growth of Prostate Cancer Cells Identified (Dec. 27, 2010).

Your 50/50 shot of missing prostate cancer with initial biopsy

More than one million biopsies for prostate cancer are performed annually in the U.S., with 40%-50% of initial biopsies identifying cancer.  So more than one half million new cases have negative prostate biopsies.

Yet ... in those who have repeat biopsies because of rising PSAs, cancer is identified in approximately 25% of these men.

In other words, our current biopsy procedure "misses up to half of all small tumors and up to one third of tumors eventually detected even using repeat sextant biopsy," according urologist Dr. J. Stephen Jones, in his article Managing Patients Following a Negative Prostate Biopsy, in Renal and Urology News, Feb. 8, 2011. (Graphic at right from article)

Yeah, that's scary -- there's a lot of missed cancer, but also a lot of unnecessary biopsies.

Famous guys with prostate cancer

I’ll try to keep this updated from time to time.  Many names from the “Health Diaries” and other sources.

Bill Rogers: A 4-time Boston Marathon and New York marathon winner, “Boston Billy” was diagnosed with prostate cancer in December 2007 and had surgery shortly after – and then began a running series benefitting prostate cancer research.

Dennis Hopper: ‘Easy Rider’ and ‘Apocalypse Now’ star succumbed to prostate cancer in May 2010, after being diagnosed with the disease about eight months earlier during a visit to a hospital for the flu.  At the time, his cancer had progressed beyond the prostate and into the bones. He was 74.

Robert DeNiro: The Academy Award winner was diagnosed with early-stage cancer in 2003 at the age of 60. He has kept details of his treatment private. His father died of prostate cancer at the age of 71.  To the right, early career ... as the Taxi Driver.... 

Dan Fogelberg: The American singer-songwriter battled advanced prostate cancer for three years.  He underwent therapy and the cancer went in remission for awhile before he finally died at age 56 in December 2007.

James Brown: The Godfather of Soul was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2004 but survived. He died of heart failure in 2006.  

More help in making treatment decision

From the Wall Street Journal, Ron Winslow, February 3, 2011

Researchers said they have identified a combination of four genes that appear to play a critical role in determining whether prostate cancer in its early stages will go on to become an aggressive, lethal disease. 

The information could enable doctors and patients to make better decisions after the diagnosis of prostate cancer, a disease that is commonly overtreated today, researchers said.

Predicting Outcomes

From the Arkansas Prostate Cancer Foundation

• Almost 100% of men diagnosed with prostate cancer are still alive in 5 years*.
• Over 90% of prostate cancer cases are found while the cancer is still either local or regional, and nearly 100% of these men are still alive 5 years after being diagnosed.
• In cases where the cancer has spread to distant parts of the body, 34% survive 5 years.
• After 10 years, about 98% of men diagnosed with early-stage prostate cancer are still alive*, but only 17.6% of those diagnosed with advanced-stage prostate cancer survive 10 years*.

*not including those who died from other causes.

Cleansing for prostate health?

Harmful toxins and parasites live in the colon and digestive system, eventually making their way to the prostate, where they accumulate enmasse and set the stage for disease, infection and chronic inflammation, a potential precursor for cancer.

It's a theory, espoused by many, especially in the alternative medical fields, including Dr. Larry Clapp, who popularized the idea in his book, Prostate Health in 90 Days without drugs or surgery (first published in 1997 and updated in 2007).

Even prestigious mainstream researchers like Johns Hopkins Research now report how chronic inflammation from bacterial infection can  trigger changes in our DNA, leading to tumor development.

Because of the prostate's vulnerability to infection and inflammation—by definition prostatitis, the number one reason why men visit urologists in the U.S—JHR has called the prostate "a breeding ground for cancer."

Check out Coming Clean On My 9-Day Cleanse ... in it, I blog about my second experience with a cleanse and some thoughts on cleansing and prostate health.

I don't have any interest in the company, Isogenix, that produced the cleanse products.

New Prostate Cancer Statistics

• Prostate cancer is the most common cancer among men, excluding skin cancer.
• American Cancer Society (ACS) estimates for 2010 include 217,730 new cases of prostate cancer in the US.
• Year 2010 estimates include 32,050 deaths occurring from prostate cancer in the US alone, making it the second leading cause of cancer death in men.
• All men are at risk for prostate cancer. The risk increases with age, and family history also increases the risk.
• African American men are more likely to have prostate cancer than Caucasian men, and have nearly a two-fold higher mortality rate than Caucasian men.

To treat or not to treat--new biomarker may help make decision

        A new "biomarker" has been have identified that may help men make a life-altering decision, whether to opt for radical surgery or radiation or to let the prostate cancer go untreated—knowing that, in most cases, prostate cancer is slow-growing and will never become fatal. After studying the medical records of 6,710 men over a period of five or more years, the researchers found that those with the highest ionized calcium levels in their bloodstream were three times more likely to die of prostate cancer than those with the least amount of the calcium.
       The study was reported in the February issue of Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention