Time for Army Bob to go on offense vs. prostate cancer

by Robert M. Traxler

After months on the defensive (androgen deprivation therapy) stopping the advancement of the disease with drugs, thankfully the time has finally arrived to go on the offensive against the cancer.

After being diagnosed with advanced aggressive prostate cancer, I decided to use the megaphone Mr. David Young provided in the Town Broadcast to educate and hopefully help others in Dorr, Wayland Hopkins, Martin and Moline. Forewarned is forearmed, and arming men and families with a bit of basic knowledge of this cancer and treatment just may help a few good folks.

Last week my wife and I traveled to Livonia to get fiducial markers (three small gold rice-sized pellets) injected in the prostate to provide reference points to aid aiming, for Dr. Forstner to bombard the cancer with external beam radiation. While there, I was asked to volunteer for a study on prostate cancer titled “Prostate Cancer Clinical Data Base/Tissue Bank…,” the title goes on for a while but that is the general direction of the study. The decision was easy, of course I would, as a person who believes in service to others it would be hypocritical not to.

The lead investigator, Dr./ Professor John Wei, explained it would require a few tissue samples and a blood draw along with a digital recital exam, a questionnaire and some follow-up procedures. Dr. Wei was going to place the fiducial markers in the prostate anyway, so taking four core samples was not that much an inconvenience. The additional procedure added to the discomfort but all in all the side effects were still mild.

On April 11, a specially enhanced CT scan (made necessary because of two hip replacements) was done at Metro Hospital and we were told in five to seven business days the results will be sent to Dr. Forstner, and she would enter the data into a computer. The computer will map out an aggressive program to go to atomic war with the cancer. Nuking the cancer will hopefully kill it; most likely not all of it, but a sufficient amount to set it back years.

Dr. Forstner asked the CT folks to speed up the results and she had the data analyzed entered and a battle plan staffed and ready by April 14. On April 18, we had a consult with Dr. Forstner and the mold to hold the body stationary and external markers, additional aiming points (small tattoos) were be made. Now the nine weeks on the offensive begins the radiation treatments, which thankfully start on May 1.

We know men 45 to 70 are at an additional risk for prostate cancer; men with a family history of the all cancers and African Americans are at twice the risk and should be even more watchful. Some new studies are adding a caution that men who are overweight or are experiencing early balding, have had a previous prostate infection or have a history of smoking (the American Cancer Society includes a caution on marijuana use) may be at some additional risk for the most aggressive/lethal type of prostate cancer. I started to lose hair a bit earlier than my peers, was never obese, smoked tobacco for seven years quitting in 1976, had a prostate infection in 1997 and have the type of aggressive and more dangerous cancer they cited in the study. Please understand this caution has not been conclusively proven.

Next time I will report to you with more details on the external beam radiation process.