Opinions please ?

I am not an expert Keef, far from it. I just had to learn a lot about the different aspects because 3 of the 4 most important men in my life had PCa. I read all the research papers but I am still only putting my interpretation on things so please don't think I know better than anyone else - I can get it wrong.

As far as your post-op results go, John decided to wait and even when his PSA started to rise he delayed RT because he was still struggling with side effects from the op. Two years after the surgery, it became clear that something had been left behind and he began RT/HT - he has been undetectable ever since.

The trial at Leeds is to see a) whether high risk men do better with adjuvant RT than waiting to see if they need salvage RT later and b) to see what the impact is of giving higher than usual doses of RT over a shorter time. It is a national project of which Leeds is only one participant.

In the end it comes down to your personality - will you be happier having the RT just in case or waiting to see if you need it?

Keep. ..I had very similar results to you. Upgraded to T3a after surgery, small focal breech, nodes clear...PSA 0.06. Although I'm not sure if yours were 0.005, 0.05 or 0.5. I think it's interesting that the surgeon mentioned the trial.
I went to talk to the oncologist about the trial and initially decided against it....she kept an eye on my PSA which started to creep up over a 3-4 month period so went in for RT.
That was 2 years ago and my latest PSA was 0.02. You can read my profile by clicking on my name.

Bri

Hi Keith
I would think the continence thing is because obviously the RT can cause urinary problems for some men.

Adjuvent RT usually has to take place within 6 months of the previous treatment.

Bri

Hi Keef,

I would just add one note of caution, the mountain bike.

I am far from an expert in this field, and mostly physical exercise is supposed to be very good for us, both at warding off the cancer and at minimising the side effects of treatment, but somewhere in the back of my mind there have been posts on here in the past warning of the dangers of cycling, the saddle putting physical pressure on the prostate etc.

Indeed I had a friend, who was a very keen cyclist, not mountain bikes but time trials on the roads etc, and he died young from PCa.

I suggest it might be something you could research, because I am far from sure of my facts, but in the back of my mind I have read of links between racing saddles and prostate cancer. 

:)

Dave

There are two separate issues around cycling.

1) Competitive and very keen cyclists have a raised PSA but seem to have no increased risk of getting prostate cancer so it is advised that if a man has raised PSA and is a regular cyclist, he should advise the specialist before deciding whether or not to go ahead with a biopsy as the (bit) higher than average PSA is likely to be to do with the bike rather than a medical problem.

2) Men that have had surgery should avoid cycling for a time after the op as it is thought riding a bike could slow down or even prevent the nerve bundles from repairing and therefore making ED more likely to be permanent.