Tag: PSA

Day 3,869 – PSA, Imaging, and Salvage Radiation

On By DanIn Prostate Cancer, Recurrence, Research7 Comments

Today was a tough day. The news of my PSA increasing to 0.21 ng/ml weighed heavily on me throughout the day. It even made me a little snippy in a meeting this morning, as my tolerance for trivial bullsh*t decreased to an all-time low. Oh well. They’ll get over it.

Long-time readers of this blog already know that I’ve delayed starting salvage radiation therapy because I’m reluctant to incur the short- and long-term side effects of radiation without having a higher degree of confidence that we’re actually zapping in the correct location(s)—zapping the cancer itself.

Of course, the current state of imaging for prostate cancer generally sucks, but it is getting better with advances like PSMA PET scans using 68Ga-PSMA-11 where prostate cancer can be located much earlier and much more accurately than using previous technologies such as bone scans. But even 68Ga PSMA PET scans have their limitations.

One of the greatest challenges (gambles?) in deciding when to start salvage radiation therapy is the timing. Most will argue the earlier, the better. Statistics show that in most cases, the cancer is still in the prostate bed or pelvic region, so the radiation oncologists start blindly zapping those regions hoping the statistics are correct. But the cancer could have already spread to more remote locations.

With my PSA doubling time in the 4-5 year range, my team and I have decided to hold off on salvage radiation therapy and, in so doing, I’ve avoided any radiation side effects for five years giving me a high quality of life during that time. That has value to me. Of course, none of us know whether the little buggers have been hanging out in the prostate bed during that time (like statistics would show), or if they’ve gone on one of their own infamous road trips and have started spreading.

One of the things that I’ve been trying to determine for months now is at what PSA level can the Ga68 PSMA PET scan begin to reliably pick up prostate cancer. The answer typically was in the 1.0 to 2.0 range for the PSA. With a PSA a fraction of that (0.21) the PSMA PET scan really wouldn’t be a reliable tool for me yet. It’s not a completely worthless tool, but there are decent chances that I could come away with a false negative result.

Tonight, I stumbled across this paper that provided some insights: Assessment of 68Ga-PSMA-11 PET Accuracy in Localizing Recurrent Prostate Cancer: A Prospective Single-Arm Clinical Trial.

The chart below taken from the paper was exactly what I was looking for and more. First, it shows the number of cases where patients with an increasing PSA after prostatectomy have positive results based on their PSA level. For those with PSAs less than 0.5 ng/ml (me), the number of positive cases was only 38%. In other words, there’s about a one in three chance that the Ga68 PSMA PET will be able to locate the cancer at that PSA level. Not good odds, but better than zero.

To me, the really interesting thing about this chart is that it shows the location of where the PSMA PET scan found the cancer by PSA level.

Fendler WP, Calais J, Eiber M, Flavell RR, Mishoe A, Feng FY, Nguyen HG, Reiter RE, Rettig MB, Okamoto S, Emmett L, Zacho HD, Ilhan H, Wetter A, Rischpler C, Schoder H, Burger IA, Gartmann J, Smith R, Small EJ, Slavik R, Carroll PR, Herrmann K, Czernin J, Hope TA. Assessment of 68Ga-PSMA-11 PET Accuracy in Localizing Recurrent Prostate Cancer: A Prospective Single-Arm Clinical Trial. JAMA Oncol. 2019 Jun 1;5(6):856-863. doi: 10.1001/jamaoncol.2019.0096. PMID: 30920593; PMCID: PMC6567829.

You can see that more than half of the cancer in patients with PSAs below 0.5 were found either in the prostate bed or pelvic region, both of which should be very treatable with salvage radiation therapy.

However, once the cancer is in other the other regions—extrapelvic nonbone (other organs), bone, or multiple regions—the cancer becomes very difficult if not impossible to treat. At that point, it’s only managed.

Please keep in mind that those are my non-expert opinions that I will have to confirm with my medical team to make sure I’m interpreting things correctly.

You can see that, as your PSA increases above 0.5 ng/ml, the cancer was found more broadly in the study participants. By that, I mean the cancer had spread beyond the prostate bed and pelvic region. You can also see, however, that even with PSAs less than 0.5, the cancer has already spread elsewhere in about 40% of the patients in the study with that PSA level.

That’s the whole point of knowing this. If the cancer has already spread, there’s no sense in zapping the prostate bed or pelvis risking long-term radiation side effects adversely impacting quality of life for no gain whatsoever.

This is only one study with 635 patients, so I am taking the results above with a healthy dose of skepticism, and I’ll continue to do more research in the three weeks before my appointment. But this study will be a good conversation opener for the consultation.

Some of the questions that are on the top of my bald head are:

  • Should we run another PSA test to see if this was an outlier/anomaly like some of my previous PSA tests (I’ve been using the same lab all along)?
  • How much weight does PSA doubling time have now that we’ve crossed the 0.2 ng/ml threshold?
  • Would he support getting the Ga68 PSMA PET scan done at this PSA level?
  • If not, at what PSA level would he support getting the PSMA PET scan?
  • Would he be willing to give me a referral to get one done even if I have to pay for it myself?

Fortunately, the US Food and Drug Administration approved the Ga68 PSMA PET scan at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA), and that would be a 2.5-3 hour drive for me to get up there to have the scan.

In the meantime, I’m going to have to reconcile in my own mind how high I’m going to let my PSA get before taking action, scan or not.

Lots of research, thinking, and soul-searching ahead. But be forewarned: My trivial B.S. tolerance level is way less than my PSA. 🙂

Month 127 – PSA Results

On By DanIn Prostate Cancer, Recurrence13 Comments

I went for my originally scheduled six-month PSA test last Thursday and was able to look online last night to see the disconcerting results: A substantial increase to 0.21 ng/ml.

Breaking the 0.2 ng/ml threshold now officially puts me into the biochemical recurrence category, at least according to the long-held definition of biochemical recurrence.

Needless to say, I felt gut-punched on seeing the results. Sure, I’ve know for over five years that my trend has been upward, but I guess I got comfortable with it bouncing around the 0.10 to 0.16 range for the last few years. I wasn’t expecting such a substantial leap between my “surprise” PSA test in February and this one in June.

When it comes to PSA doubling time, it dropped from 67.7 months to 52.8 months with this latest test result included in the calculations. If I look at only the five most recent test results, the PSA doubling time drops to 46.5 months. Of course, all of those are great numbers that a lot of guys would like to have.

My appointment with the doctor isn’t until 6 July, and it will be an interesting conversation now that we’ve crossed that magical line of 0.2 ng/ml. In a way, I’m glad I’ve got several weeks to think this through and to come up with good questions to ask so that I’m prepared for the appointment.

Of course, salvage radiation therapy just moved to the top of the list of things to talk about. It will be interesting to see if their recommendation changes given the 0.21 number versus the long PSA doubling time.

Needless to say, there’s going to be much reflection and research in the weeks ahead.

Month 124 – Prostate Cancer a Chronic Illness?

On By DanIn Incontinence, Prostate Cancer, Side EffectsLeave a comment

It’s tough to come up with a decent prostate cancer-related topic for this month. I guess when things are going relatively well, that’s a good thing.

I’ve gotten to the point where I think of this more as a chronic illness like arthritis than I do a potentially life-ending cancer. Last month’s bump up in my surprise PSA test hasn’t fazed me at all. It is what it is. Move on. Maybe that’s a mistake.

I will say, though, that I’ve probably packed on a couple of pandemic pounds over the last twelve months of quarantine and work from home and, when that happens, I tend to see a slight uptick in minor incontinence episodes. Nothing major. A little dribble here, a little dribble there. More a nuisance than anything. Time to get more active and shed a few of those pounds.

Speaking of getting active, I did just that after my last post. I took my first ever trip to Death Valley. I figured if I can’t socially distance there, where can I socially distance? It’s a remarkable place. Going in February is one of the best times to go. Temperatures were in the low 70s °F/ 20s °C during the day and around 45 °F/7° C at night. Not bad at all.

After visiting Death Valley, I drove to the Valley of Fire just about an hour northeast of Las Vegas. That was amazing as well. If you’re looking for a diversion, you can check out my write-up and photos HERE. My apologies for the slow-loading photos. I uploaded the full resolution versions, but if you zoom in on any of them, the detail is incredible.

I’ve got King’s Canyon/Sequoia and Yellowstone National Parks on the agenda for later this year barring any massive changes in the pandemic status. Once this is all lifted and international travel is allowed again, New Zealand has made it to the top of my bucket list. Fingers crossed.

That’s about it for this installment.

Stay well!

Month 123 – Surprise PSA Test

On By DanIn Prostate Cancer5 Comments

“How the hell did you have a surprise PSA test?” you ask. “Didn’t you feel the needle going into your arm?!?”

Yes, I did.

I was a bit overdue for the normal tests that you have for your annual physical, and my doctor’s office called a week ago and told me I needed to come in for some blood work and a urinalysis. So I did.

I was going through the results online today, and the very last test listed was a PSA test. I was a bit surprised that they ran it considering we just ran one in December. The result? It came out 0.16 ng/ml.

Obviously, that’s a step up from the December result of 0.13 ng/ml, but I’m not overly concerned about it because it’s relatively in line with my other recent results. The other reason is that I didn’t follow my usual routine for this PSA test.

When I know that I have a PSA test coming up, for a week before, I will abstain from activities that could cause it to read a little higher than normal. Because this was a surprise test, I didn’t do that and that may account for the bump up in the number.

Another reason not to be too overly excited is my PSA doubling time is 65.3 months.

Of course, because this was an unexpected test, I don’t have an appointment set up with the urology department, so we’ll just stick to the plan and see what happens when I retest in late June for an early July appointment.

On an unrelated note, because I work in a hospital, I was able to get both doses of the Pfizer COVID vaccine.

For the first dose, my arm was tender at the injection site for about 30 hours after the injection, but it wasn’t bad enough to warrant taking any pain medication like acetaminophen or ibuprofen. I had a mild headache late in the evening, but I may attribute that to just being up too late the night before.

The injection site for the second dose was less tender and for a shorter period, but I was pretty fatigued later in the afternoon and early evening (I received the injection around 10 a.m.). Nothing a good nap and a good night’s sleep wouldn’t cure.

It will be two weeks since the second dose this Friday, so I should have full resistance built up by then. I’ll continue to wear a mask and socially distance, as is recommended.

Stay well!

Month 121 – PSA Results

On By DanIn Prostate Cancer9 Comments

Well, I jumped the gun by a couple of weeks and had my latest PSA test done this past Tuesday. I was originally going to wait until the week before Christmas, but with all that’s going on, I decided to go a little early.

Let’s just say I received an early Christmas gift—my PSA dropped from 0.14 ng/ml to 0.13 ng/ml. I can’t explain it, but I’ll take it. It also bumps my PSA doubling time out to 67.7 months. I’ll take that, too.

My appointment with the doctor is on 5 January 2021, and I suspect that, just like the last one, it will be a telephone call rather than an in-person visit given all that’s going on with the pandemic. That’s fine by me. I suspect the conversation will go something like, “There’s no need for action. Let’s retest in another 6 months.”

I’ll have to admit that I psychologically prepared myself for a higher number—perhaps as high as 0.2 ng/ml—and I was a bit taken aback when I saw the results. In a good way, of course. It took a few seconds to reconcile the change in thinking.

All the best to everyone through the holidays and into the New Year! Steer clear of the ‘rona and stay well!

Month 117 – Running on Pandemic Time

On By DanIn Prostate Cancer, Research4 Comments

Is it just me, or is anyone else having pandemic days all blend together and you lose track of time? Late last night (technically very early this morning as I was tossing and turning in bed around 2 a.m.), I realized, “Crap! I didn’t even think about posting on my blog, let alone write anything!”

So here I am on my advertised posting day with three hours and one minute left to get this out on the 11th, and I pretty much have nothing. Well, that’s not entirely true…

I did come across this article on The “New” Prostate Cancer Infolink that talks about PSA doubling times with respect to prostate cancer progression in men with non-metastatic castration resistant prostate cancer.

PSA doubling time and prognosis for men with nmCRPC

Unfortunately, they weren’t able to access the full study report, and the summary that’s provided is pretty high-level, restating the obvious: Shorter PSADT is associated with shorter metastasis-free survival and shorter overall survival.

One of the things that I discovered working in a hospital is that I can sometimes access research reports like this via its computer network. I’ll see if I can access this report to learn more details about the study and, if I can, I’ll share anything I learn.

Whew! Finished with time to spare. 🙂

Stay well and keep living the pandemic life as best and as safely you can wherever you happen to be.

Day 3,521 – A Chat with the Doctor

On By DanIn Prostate Cancer3 Comments

My appointment with the doctor is scheduled for tomorrow afternoon, but after dinner this evening, my phone rang. It was the doctor calling about my appointment.

In a nutshell, VA Medical Center San Diego is trying to reduce the number of in-person visits during COVID-19, so he was wondering if I would be okay chatting with him about my results over the phone. Of course, I was.

He let me know that my PSA dropped from 0.16 to 0.14 ng/ml and that things were pretty “stable” and having a “low PSA” was a good thing. He mentioned that at some point in the future, we may need to discuss radiation, but that point wasn’t now. “For you, that could be years from now.” I’ll take that.

I shared with him my desire to do imaging before zapping if possible. I also brought up the trial at the VA Los Angeles, and he wasn’t aware of it. So I pulled it up and shared the trial number with him for his education / reference.

Bottom line: We agreed to retest in January and go from there.

Now all I have to do is make it through six months of COVID insanity…

On a related note, the VA healthcare system has gotten a bad rap over the years for a variety of things. It seems to be location-dependent, and some of the criticism is well-deserved.

I’ve been going to the VA Medical Center San Diego and its satellite clinics for about 8 years now, and I’ve had nothing but a positive experience, and tonight’s unsolicited call from the doctor just reinforced that for me.

As we used to say in the Navy: Bravo Zulu! (Well done!)

Stay well everyone!

#WearAMask #SocialDistancing #WashYourHands #StayHome

Day 3,508 – PSA Results

On By DanIn Prostate Cancer4 Comments

Apparently, getting my blood drawn in mid-afternoon adds one day to getting my results. Needless to say, I’m pleased with the 0.14 ng/ml reading. It’s down 0.02 from the last two times (excluding that oddball 0.08 reading in February).

This reading added 10 months to my PSA doubling time, so it’s now out to 48.9 months according to the Memorial Sloan Kettering PSA Doubling Time Calculator.

PSA 20200615

My appointment with the doctor is on 2 July and we’ll see how that goes. I suspect it will be another continue-to-monitor situation, and that’s fine by me.

Have a great weekend and happy Father’s Day to all the dads out there! Stay well!

Day 3,505 – Change in PSA Test Plan

On By DanIn Prostate Cancer7 Comments

My work schedule forced a little change in plan for getting my PSA test done. I was planning on going first thing tomorrow morning, but a 9:00 a.m. scheduled meeting was a little too close for comfort, and I wasn’t sure that I could make it back to the office in time, so I left work a little early to have the blood drawn.

The clinic did do a COVID-19 screening of me before I could even enter the building, including taking my temperature. Surprisingly, there was no one in line for the lab, so I was in and out in under 10 minutes. I may make going later in the afternoon my new routine going forward. In the mornings, everyone wants to be the first one there, so you can wait for about an hour to get the test done.

If COVID isn’t affecting lab processing and reporting times, I should be able to access my results online after 10 p.m. PST Wednesday.

Month 115 – PSA Time & Imaging Trial for Veterans

On By DanIn Prostate Cancer, Research4 Comments

Wow. I just may get this post out on time this month! I tell you, this pandemic thing has really thrown me for a loop when it comes to maintaining some sort of routine. Fortunately (or perhaps unfortunately), I’ve returned to working from the office every day for the last three weeks, and that’s brought some structure back to my life.

PSA Time

It’s hard to believe, but four months have passed since my last PSA test, and I’ll be heading off to the clinic on Tuesday morning. I hope. I haven’t actually confirmed that they’ve reopened for routine things like blood tests. If they are open and they do take the sample, I should have the results late Thursday night or Friday. My appointment to go over the results is on 2 July.

Just as a reminder, here’s my PSA roller coaster:

 

PSA 20200223

I’m at the point where I don’t get too worked up about these tests anymore, even with the upward trend. It is what it is and I’ll deal with the number when I get it.

Imaging Trial for Veterans in Los Angeles

The VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System is conducting a phase II trial  “to determine whether a positron emission tomography (PET)/computed tomography (CT) scan using 18F-DCFPyL affects the clinical management plan in Veterans.” Some are saying that 18F-DCFPyL may prove to be even better than a Ga-68 scan.

For patients with biochemical recurrence, they want your PSA to be at least 0.2 in a post-radical prostatectomy situation, so unless my PSA jumps up again next week, I’m not eligible. (No, I’m not wanting it to jump up.) The cost is free to veterans and only veterans are eligible. You can learn more about the trial here:

18F-DCFPyL PET/CT Impact on Treatment Strategies for Patients With Prostate Cancer (PROSPYL)

So that’s about it from a toasty 90° F / 32° C San Diego.

Wear a mask. Stay apart. Stay well!