M.D.Anderson is Number One in Terry’s Book
SURVIVING PROSTATE CANCER – by Terry Lavy (CURED 10/2/08)
One of the most alarming calls I have received was the one from my urologist when he said “I’m sorry to inform you but your biopsy has shown that you have prostate cancer”!
My first reaction on March 4, 2008 was shock and disbelief, since I had had no symptoms or any real reason to be suspicious other than the fact that my annual PSA reading was 5.1 whereas 15 months earlier it had been 3.85. Two of my family doctors had indicated to me that a PSA of 4.0 was acceptable (not really suspicious for someone 70 years old and I was 72 at that time). I now know that some with a PSA of 2.0 may have cancer and some with a PSA of 15 could be cancer-free. A 12 to 24 biopsy sample is the real criteria needed to determine the presence or absence of prostate cancer. A slow rise in PSA level is expected and acceptable as one ages; however, rapid increases or any increase of 0.75 between checkups should result in you getting a biopsy as soon as possible.
Some very good news regarding prostate cancer is that most forms are relatively slow growing and one of the easiest kinds of cancer to cure!
It is now 39 days since I completed my 38-session Proton Therapy Fixed Beam Radiation (PTFBR) at M.D. Anderson in Houston, Texas! I feel very fortunate to have had the opportunity to receive what I believe to be the very best and easiest treatment currently available. Since I had never spent a night in a hospital and am not very fond of knives and needles, I was pleasantly surprised to learn that PTFBR patients were being routinely treated (and cured as stated by many, many former patients) with no cutting, no pain, no catheters, no incontinence or other side effects!!
Within 2 days of my local urologist sitting down and explaining in detail five or six of the common methods of eliminating prostate cancer (and never mentioning PTFBR) and attempting to set up a treatment date for me, I had the ultimate good fortune of being contacted by a recently treated M.D. Anderson PTFBR patient. After informing him of my 5.1 PSA and Gleason score of 7, he immediately exclaimed “Do not worry one more second about your cancer- you can assume that your cancer is a thing of the past.” He knew that my scores qualified me for PTFBR treatment at M.D. Anderson (PSAs under 20 and Gleason scores under 8 qualify). He gave me their hot-line number (713-563-9398), and the next day I called them to inquire about his optimism and their treatment. The secretary confirmed all he told me; however, the waiting list of 4 to 6 months and the 5-day a week treatments (38 over a 2-month period) made me skeptical whether I could arrange that. With immediate encouragement from my wife and family I made the decision to get on their list.
From that moment to this time my apprehension regarding my prostate cancer has been totally gone. We found excellent and relatively inexpensive housing (40-foot trailer rental) at a RV Court about 8 minutes, and little traffic, from the Proton Treatment Center. The professionalism of the doctors and staff and the camaraderie of the other 50-plus patients completing similar treatments made this a memorable and enjoyable (in spite of 3 hurricanes, including one where we had to evacuate twice!) 2 months.
Proton radiation differs from the more commonly used photon radiation; proton radiation is focused to a spot and does not cause damage to surrounding tissues. It is commonly now being used to treat brain cancer and other localized tumors.
Each treatment day I received 15 to 20 seconds of proton radiation administered thru each hip. I felt no pain and after 38 treatments had only a slight 1-inch, sun-tan like spot on each hip. During their treatment time, many patients were working 40-hour weeks while others regularly played 18 holes of golf! The lack of fatigue was evident since one could not differentiate between those patients receiving their first treatment or their 38th; they all felt fine! Personally, I got up at 5:30 am and fished an hour before getting ready to go to my 10:30 am treatment.
At an informal completion (victory) ceremony and celebration (where the patient got to hit a big, noisy gong) each patient had the opportunity to say goodbye to the staff and his fellow, remaining for treatment, friends. Cookies, cake, fruit or other goodies were commonly provided by the happy, patients and their family members after the completion ceremony.
A very informative book has been written by Robert J. Marckini, a patient treated 5 or 6 years ago. The book title is “You Can Beat Prostate Cancer and You Don’t Need Surgery To Do It.”
Proton Radiation Centers are located in the following five states CA, FL, IN, MA and TX with three new ones being built in OK. In a recent call to M.D. Anderson I was informed that by adding an additional proton radiation physician their current waiting list time is now only approximately 3-4 weeks! Most costs are covered by Medicare + supplemental insurance.
PLEASE DON’T HESITATE TO CONTACT ME AT tlavy[at]uark[dot]edu OR BY COMMENTING HERE IF YOU OR YOUR FRIENDS HAVE JUST BEEN DIAGNOSED WITH PROSTATE CANCER – YOUR UROLOGIST MAY NOT TELL YOU ABOUT PROTON THERAPY! OVER THE PAST 15 YEARS THOUSANDS HAVE BEEN SUCCESSFULLY TREATED USING PROTON THERAPY. I BELIEVE M.D. ANDERSON IS THE NUMBER ONE CANCER TREATMENT CENTER!
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