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Posted 4/9/2014 8:41 AM (GMT -5)
After having elevated PSA for 10 years (floating in the 6.5-7.9 range) and three negative biopsies (most recent three years ago) my husband's PSA spiked to 13 in the past six months. I am bracing for the worst and want to be prepared. Besides Walsh's "Surviving Prostate Cancer", what books do you feel have been most worthwhile? So many choices on Amazon and I want to make sure he gets the best and most current info. I would like to keep it to two or three choices. He has been seeing urologists at Mayo all along, but I want him to know all options and not feel overwhelmed.
Posted 4/9/2014 8:57 AM (GMT -5)
Prostate and Cancer, by Sheldon Marks is a good short book. There is a good book by Peter Scardino.
Invasion of the Prostate Snatchers is a good book with reasons some might avoid treatment. Good luck.
There was a recent post on this subject.
www.healingwell.com/community/default.aspx?f=35&m=3040806

Post Edited (robertC) : 4/9/2014 8:00:52 AM (GMT-6)

Posted 4/9/2014 9:03 AM (GMT -5)
Welcome to the site.

You should read though this thread:


Newly diagnosed with PC? – read this thread first
www.healingwell.com/community/default.aspx?f=35&m=2652250
Posted 4/9/2014 9:40 AM (GMT -5)
cdmn -

The post by Steve n Dallas just above, citing "Newly diagnosed with PC - read this thread first" is right on. The link he gives, to a thread right here on this forum, is to an excellent source for anyone who needs beginning information on this subject.

There are many good books on what one needs to know about prostate cancer, since you have requested books, but we also need to remember that websites (such as this forum) usually have the most up-to-date information on developments, treatments, etc. So you might consider looking at some good websites as well.

Of course there are so very many websites out there on this subject, often with different emphases, that finding those suitable for one's purposes can be challenging. But the "Newly diagnosed" thread that has been cited in the above thread has some good links to a number of them, so you might investigate those sites.

Much excellent information can also be found in the discussions that have taken place on this forum, by using the "Search" box at the top of this thread (at top, above the thread title, and to the right) to look for topics that you wish to learn more about.

And you can always post questions on this forum as you have already done, which is all but guaranteed to get answers for you, as our forum participants are highly experienced in virtually all matters relating to this disease. (We're not physicians, and we don't give out medical advice, but as patients and patient supporters, we have much experience to share).

Welcome to the forum and good luck!
Posted 4/9/2014 10:33 AM (GMT -5)

cdmn,

I was in the same situation as your husband. My PSA was elevated for over 10 years (in the 3.4-7.8 range), I also had 3 negative biopsies, and, after the third biopsy, my PSA jumped from 7.8 to 9.6.

It turned out that, despite the negative biopsies, I indeed had prostate cancer. It was found in the transition zone via a TURP. The TRUS biopsies only sampled the peripheral zone, which is why the cancer was missed.

My advice is to have a 3T mp-mri done to get an image of the entire prostate in order to discern whether the cancer is living in areas missed by the biopsies. Any suspicious areas can then be targeted with an mri/fusion biopsy.

Posted 4/9/2014 11:05 AM (GMT -5)
Another book that was very helpful to me was "Winning the Battle Against Prostate Cancer" by Gerald Chodak. Like Walsh, he is a surgeon; but he does not push surgery. He laid out a good case for each treatment. Between this one and Walsh's I was able to come to the decision to have the surgery.

-Bob

 

Posted 4/9/2014 11:39 AM (GMT -5)
Hoping he does not have PCa ... but if is diagnosed, this is a good book:

“Saving Your Sex Life – A Guide For Men With Prostate Cancer” by John P. Mulhall, M.D. He is the director of Sexual and Reproductive Medicine at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York.

-- Tigerfan
Posted 4/9/2014 5:57 PM (GMT -5)

turpT1a said...
cdmn,

I was in the same situation as your husband. My PSA was elevated for over 10 years (in the 3.4-7.8 range), I also had 3 negative biopsies, and, after the third biopsy, my PSA jumped from 7.8 to 9.6.

It turned out that, despite the negative biopsies, I indeed had prostate cancer. It was found in the transition zone via a TURP. The TRUS biopsies only sampled the peripheral zone, which is why the cancer was missed.

My advice is to have a 3T mp-mri done to get an image of the entire prostate in order to discern whether the cancer is living in areas missed by the biopsies. Any suspicious areas can then be targeted with an mri/fusion biopsy.

His doctor is recommending an MRI and a new biopsy after we rule out infection. Over the years his Mayo doctors have insisted that, while they can't guarantee the absence of any cancer cells, the thoroughness of their sampling of the whole gland should give him peace of mind when the biopsy comes back negative.

I appreciate you reply. We'll just have to take it one step at a time. This site looks like an invaluable tool for men with high PSA and PC.
Posted 4/9/2014 6:41 PM (GMT -5)
I recommend the first link in my signature below (a PDF book).

-Gedman
Posted 4/9/2014 6:41 PM (GMT -5)

robertC said...
Prostate and Cancer, by Sheldon Marks is a good short book. There is a good book by Peter Scardino.
Invasion of the Prostate Snatchers is a good book with reasons some might avoid treatment. Good luck.
There was a recent post on this subject.
www.healingwell.com/community/default.aspx?f=35&m=3040806

I was considering those two. I bought "I of the PS" several years ago, and after urging him to read it he agreed it was worthwhile. Thanks for your reply, this message board is very helpful and reassuring.
Posted 4/9/2014 6:43 PM (GMT -5)

gedman said...
I recommend the first link in my signature below (a PDF book).

-Gedman

I was on here for several hours yesterday and saw your recommendations to someone else. The NCCN book looks helpful - thanks for your reply!
Posted 4/9/2014 6:44 PM (GMT -5)

Steve n Dallas said...
Welcome to the site.

You should read though this thread:


Newly diagnosed with PC? – read this thread first
www.healingwell.com/community/default.aspx?f=35&m=2652250

I did yesterday, and depending how things go next week I will definitely have my husband take a look at it - thanks!
Posted 4/9/2014 6:47 PM (GMT -5)

81GyGuy said...
cdmn -

The post by Steve n Dallas just above, citing "Newly diagnosed with PC - read this thread first" is right on. The link he gives, to a thread right here on this forum, is to an excellent source for anyone who needs beginning information on this subject.

There are many good books on what one needs to know about prostate cancer, since you have requested books, but we also need to remember that websites (such as this forum) usually have the most up-to-date information on developments, treatments, etc. So you might consider looking at some good websites as well.

Of course there are so very many websites out there on this subject, often with different emphases, that finding those suitable for one's purposes can be challenging. But the "Newly diagnosed" thread that has been cited in the above thread has some good links to a number of them, so you might investigate those sites.

Much excellent information can also be found in the discussions that have taken place on this forum, by using the "Search" box at the top of this thread (at top, above the thread title, and to the right) to look for topics that you wish to learn more about.

And you can always post questions on this forum as you have already done, which is all but guaranteed to get answers for you, as our forum participants are highly experienced in virtually all matters relating to this disease. (We're not physicians, and we don't give out medical advice, but as patients and patient supporters, we have much experience to share).

Welcome to the forum and good luck!

I stumbled upon this message board yesterday and it is clearly a valuable source of information. Whether his elevated PSA is benign or he does have PC, I have bookmarked it for future use - thanks!
Posted 4/9/2014 6:49 PM (GMT -5)

DadOf12 said...
Another book that was very helpful to me was "Winning the Battle Against Prostate Cancer" by Gerald Chodak. Like Walsh, he is a surgeon; but he does not push surgery. He laid out a good case for each treatment. Between this one and Walsh's I was able to come to the decision to have the surgery.
-Bob

My concern is that if he does have PC, his Mayo doctors will push surgery. I want to make sure he carefully considers all options before rushing into anything. Thanks for the recommendation!
Posted 4/9/2014 6:52 PM (GMT -5)

Tigerfan53 said...
Hoping he does not have PCa ... but if is diagnosed, this is a good book:

“Saving Your Sex Life – A Guide For Men With Prostate Cancer” by John P. Mulhall, M.D. He is the director of Sexual and Reproductive Medicine at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York.

-- Tigerfan

Thanks for the recommendation!
Posted 4/9/2014 6:55 PM (GMT -5)

cdmn said...

DadOf12 said...
Another book that was very helpful to me was "Winning the Battle Against Prostate Cancer" by Gerald Chodak. Like Walsh, he is a surgeon; but he does not push surgery. He laid out a good case for each treatment. Between this one and Walsh's I was able to come to the decision to have the surgery.
-Bob

My concern is that if he does have PC, his Mayo doctors will push surgery. I want to make sure he carefully considers all options before rushing into anything. Thanks for the recommendation!

Newly diagnosed myself. I just finished reading Dr. John McHugh's book "The Decision" he is a urologist who was diagnosed with Pca himself. Although he is a surgeon, I felt he did an excellent job of showing the contrast between Radiation and Surgery and a good thought process to employ in your decision making process. Don't waste your Money on Dr. Aaron Katz's book and Dr. Strum's book, "A primer" is excellent but dated all on Amazon.
Posted 4/9/2014 10:50 PM (GMT -5)

dowstrategy said...

cdmn said...

DadOf12 said...
Another book that was very helpful to me was "Winning the Battle Against Prostate Cancer" by Gerald Chodak. Like Walsh, he is a surgeon; but he does not push surgery. He laid out a good case for each treatment. Between this one and Walsh's I was able to come to the decision to have the surgery.
-Bob

My concern is that if he does have PC, his Mayo doctors will push surgery. I want to make sure he carefully considers all options before rushing into anything. Thanks for the recommendation!

Newly diagnosed myself. I just finished reading Dr. John McHugh's book "The Decision" he is a urologist who was diagnosed with Pca himself. Although he is a surgeon, I felt he did an excellent job of showing the contrast between Radiation and Surgery and a good thought process to employ in your decision making process. Don't waste your Money on Dr. Aaron Katz's book and Dr. Strum's book, "A primer" is excellent but dated all on Amazon.

Thanks for the info, best of luck in your journey to being PCa free.
Posted 4/10/2014 6:12 AM (GMT -5)
The most useful information that I got was from Surviving Prostate Cancer Without Surgery by Bradley Hennenfent.
Posted 4/10/2014 3:32 PM (GMT -5)
@gedman,
You may wish to update your signature as the NCCN has a new link for the latest patient guidelines. I have it at my site along with the Physicians guidelines that is really for our advanced viewers and is not a patient friendly document. But you would probably understand it.

It is a file you can download from the PCAF site. You can't get it from the NCCN site unless you are a member.

advancedpcatalk.freeforums.net/thread/81/new-2014-nccn-guidelines
Posted 4/10/2014 3:41 PM (GMT -5)
cdmn,
Here's another that I hand out regularly in our support group

Promoting Wellness by Mark Moyad.

www.amazon.com/PROMOTING-WELLNESS-prostate-cancer-patients/dp/1938170032

Moyad is one of the great speakers specializing in prostate cancer that I have seen.

And one last link ~ Dean Ornish talks about healthy living in the video link below. (skip the first 5 minutes as it is all introductory) Ornish is well known for his work at UC-San Francisco on healthy lifestyle approaches to prostate cancer. He studied dietary and exercise in men diagnosed with PCa for over 35 years.

www3.mdanderson.org/streams/FullVideoPlayer.cfm?xml=publicEd%2Fconfig%2FDiet-Exercise-Ornish--cfg
Posted 4/10/2014 4:03 PM (GMT -5)

GOP said...
The most useful information that I got was from Surviving Prostate Cancer Without Surgery by Bradley Hennenfent.

I hope if my husband does have PCa he will have as good an outcome as you seem to have had. The prospect of surgery will be terrifying for him - the biopsies are hard enough. We will explore every option before going down that road. Thanks for the recommendation, and I wish you continued good health.
Posted 4/10/2014 5:00 PM (GMT -5)
cdmn,
That Ornish video dos not have him speaking until the 9 minute mark. You can fast forward that video to that mark and he is a terrific speaker.

Both the video and the book I posted are a great read even before a diagnosis and can in fact help in the battle should the diagnosis come.
Posted 4/10/2014 5:22 PM (GMT -5)

Tony Crispino said...
cdmn,
That Ornish video dos not have him speaking until the 9 minute mark. You can fast forward that video to that mark and he is a terrific speaker.

Both the video and the book I posted are a great read even before a diagnosis and can in fact help in the battle should the diagnosis come.

Thank you, and I agree about reading up even before a diagnosis. That's why I bought him Invasion of the Prostate Snatchers a few years ago. He resisted reading it at first but acknowledged afterward that it was worthwhile.
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