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Prostate info websites

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User

Posted 23 May 2019 at 11:40

While researching options to try and persuade my dad to see the doc soon, I came across this website

www.bensprostate.com

He appears to also have written quite a few books on Amazon with lots of good reviews.

Maybe it's just me but I feel that he is contradicting conventional medical advice, warning men about the risks of having biopsies, and also why one should "never take prostate drugs".

https://www.bensprostate.com/never-take-prostate-drugs/

I think part of the reason behind my dad's reluctance is fear of the procedures. He has always been suspicious of prescription drugs, preferring "holistic, naturopathic" solutions whenever possible.... much to my overall frustration.

What do other people think about this Ben guy? His website features prominently on search engines about prostate cancer.

Sorry if this is the wrong section to post this - not sure which other section is relevant!

User

Posted 23 May 2019 at 12:14

There was a lot of overtreatment in the USA where medical investigations and treatment are perversely incentivised. This created a lot of patients with life changing side effects and zero benefit in terms of life extension and QOL.

Active surveillance is now the first choice for suitable candidates. BUT to decide what if any treatment is necessary you ultimately still need a biopsy, nothing else is as reliable.

So your dad has two choices ignore his PSA rise (treating with herbs falls into this category!) Or get an MPMRI and if necessary a targeted biopsy. Both these choices are legitimate and the older you are the more attractive is the ignore option.

User

Posted 23 May 2019 at 15:17

As far as I know there are no recorded cases of benign cells becoming malignant as a result of biopsy. Nor are there any recorded cases of cancer cells spreading through TRUS biopsy although there are a tiny number of these cases (called needle tracking) as a result of template biopsy.

At your dad's age, my guess is they would only offer a template biopsy if they felt they absolutely had to. Tell him that cancer was never made worse by a scan.

I suppose one of the questions is, if he was diagnosed would he agree to any treatment ... if not, is there any point going through the diagnostics. My father-in-law was 79 at diagnosis and refused any radical treatment; he lived for another 4 years. On the flip side, death from untreated prostate cancer is no easy choice to make.

Edited by member 23 May 2019 at 15:29 | Reason: Not specified

"Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards." Soren Kierkegaard

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User

Posted 23 May 2019 at 12:14

Active surveillance is now the first choice for suitable candidates. BUT to decide what if any treatment is necessary you ultimately still need a biopsy, nothing else is as reliable.

User

Posted 23 May 2019 at 13:40

Thank you for your thoughts. Yes, overtreatment is always a risk especially in private healthcare institutions where profit is prioritised, unfortunately this is also the healthcare system where my dad lives, hence his general scepticism. At the same time, he's also taken in by a snake oil salesman, who is motivated by money too.

The same website states that a biopsy risks "turning a benign cancer into a terminal one" as it may push cancer cells into surrounding areas.

It'd be nice to know how likely this is to happen, what the risk is, etc. Surely it makes sense to have a biopsy, instead of scaring people off the idea of having one?

Edited by member 23 May 2019 at 13:42 | Reason: Not specified

User

Posted 23 May 2019 at 15:17

At your dad's age, my guess is they would only offer a template biopsy if they felt they absolutely had to. Tell him that cancer was never made worse by a scan.

Edited by member 23 May 2019 at 15:29 | Reason: Not specified

"Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards." Soren Kierkegaard

User

Posted 23 May 2019 at 15:35

As an aside, this Ben guy had bph which is a benign condition; nothing to do with cancer.

Snake oil salesman

"Life can only be understood backwards; but it must be lived forwards." Soren Kierkegaard

User

Posted 23 May 2019 at 15:51

Originally Posted by: Online Community Member

While researching options to try and persuade my dad to see the doc soon, I came across this website

www.bensprostate.com

He appears to also have written quite a few books on Amazon with lots of good reviews.

Maybe it's just me but I feel that he is contradicting conventional medical advice, warning men about the risks of having biopsies, and also why one should "never take prostate drugs".

https://www.bensprostate.com/never-take-prostate-drugs/

What do other people think about this Ben guy? His website features prominently on search engines about prostate cancer.

Sorry if this is the wrong section to post this - not sure which other section is relevant!

I only skimmed the site, but the bits I saw weren't about prostate cancer, but BPH, which is not prostate cancer.

However, being trained as a scientist, I generally want to see evidence for a claimed treatment, and that site has no pointers to scientific evidence supporting the claims.

User

Posted 23 May 2019 at 16:36

Thank you all for your thoughts, I really appreciate the feedback.

The text on the website seems to discourage biopsies and treatment for men even when they have suspected PCa... or at least, that was how I interpreted it. He claims to be backed up by research papers/evidence, but also sells his supplements by the truckload to worried men. Rather shocking that his site ended up so high in my search engine when I feel he is deterring people like my dad, with high PSA, from getting treated the conventional way, or leading them to think that the cure is worse than the disease!

My grandfather died of advanced PCa, and it wasn't an easy way to go, so I don't think ignoring the problem is a sensible idea. It is breaking my heart almost every minute of the day, and I am trying to persuade him - slowly - to see a doctor. Wish me luck.

Thank you all again.

User

Posted 23 May 2019 at 19:40

hi.

hopefully you have progressed a little. At 78 surgery unlikely to be an option for dad.

so . start slowly . discuss his fears ? of any treatment .? then as someone else posts.. why is he monitoring bloods anyway ?

is he chatting to pcuk or any local support groups ?

mpmri is painless. will he need to pay privately? see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/PI-RADS

and see my profile. my brother who lives in Australia. started with detailed mpmri and then discussed his results with his consultant and me.

He then made decision to have RT.

If his is fit and no other life limiting condition .. he may be hiding from you. then not gaining professional input he is being unfair to you and his wife in my humble opinion.

let him read this.

all the best.

User

Posted 24 May 2019 at 02:45

Certainly, all medical drugs and procedures can have unwanted and variable side effects, so this has to be taken into consideration. However, this has to be balanced against alleviating pain and helping to control a condition. If herbs could achieve the same objective with less or no downsides it would save the NHS a vast amount of money but it has not been shown to have done this.

Barry

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