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User
Posted 12 Sep 2019 at 16:51

Hi all, not really sure if I'm in the right group for this but here goes:

Most of this is in my bio, I'm 67 & was diagnosed end of last month. mpMRI showed level 4 lesion on left side. TRUS biopsy results Gleason 3+3 left side, 4+5 right 6 cores,9mm core volume, 60%overall volume with PNI (?). All treatment options available.

Had a full bone scan last Friday, after which the Consultant requested additional neck XRays.

1st meeting with Specialist Nurse this morning - I actually know her from my spinal treatments at same hospital. She looked at the bone scan results & it seems OK, apart from my neck, which is showing "areas of concern" at this point RP/RARP are off the table & an urgent MRI is being booked (should be next week).

To give some context, I have had a degenerative spinal disorder affecting both my lower back and especially my neck for a number of years, so I'm wondering if the crumbling bits of my neck & any possible calcification is being interpreted as a tumor. Or is it likely that a cancer can spread from the Prostate ONLY to the neck?

Sorry for rambling on but I'm a bit concerned.

Thanks. Steve

 

User
Posted 13 Sep 2019 at 00:21
Not sure you could get it on the NHS but a 68 Gallium PSMA scan could help determine whether PCa is in the spine. (About 8% men don't express adequate PSMA for this nuclear test to work). Even to have this scan privately you have to be referred by a consultant - not just a GP I was told, furthemore you might have to travel to one of the few centres that do it, cost about £2,600 if done privately, as least in the London area.
Barry
User
Posted 13 Sep 2019 at 03:00

Originally Posted by: Online Community Member
Not sure you could get it on the NHS but a 68 Gallium PSMA scan could help determine whether PCa is in the spine. (About 8% men don't express adequate PSMA for this nuclear test to work). Even to have this scan privately you have to be referred by a consultant - not just a GP I was told, furthemore you might have to travel to one of the few centres that do it, cost about £2,600 if done privately, as least in the London area.

I read that from June this year, the G-68 PET-PSMA scan is available on the NHS. Not sure how one would access it and which bit of the NHS would pay for it!

Cheers, John.

User
Posted 13 Sep 2019 at 16:56
PNI, or perineural invasion, means that the cancer has spread into the channels occupied by the nerves. It's important because PNI is a mechanism through which the cancer can spread outside the prostate.

Best wishes,

Chris

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User
Posted 12 Sep 2019 at 20:37
The scan can only show that there has been some calcification; it can’t tell what might have caused it. So in all likelihood, the hotspots will be due to the degenerative disease but it is absolutely right that they do more scans to confirm this.

It is possible for the only mets to be distant ones. Prostate cancer doesn’t move to the bone nearest the prostate and then spread out from there; it moves through the lymphatic system and finds somewhere cosy to settle in.

Why have you put a question mark on PNI? Is it question-marked on the diagnosis sheet?

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

User
Posted 13 Sep 2019 at 00:21
Not sure you could get it on the NHS but a 68 Gallium PSMA scan could help determine whether PCa is in the spine. (About 8% men don't express adequate PSMA for this nuclear test to work). Even to have this scan privately you have to be referred by a consultant - not just a GP I was told, furthemore you might have to travel to one of the few centres that do it, cost about £2,600 if done privately, as least in the London area.
Barry
User
Posted 13 Sep 2019 at 03:00

Originally Posted by: Online Community Member
Not sure you could get it on the NHS but a 68 Gallium PSMA scan could help determine whether PCa is in the spine. (About 8% men don't express adequate PSMA for this nuclear test to work). Even to have this scan privately you have to be referred by a consultant - not just a GP I was told, furthemore you might have to travel to one of the few centres that do it, cost about £2,600 if done privately, as least in the London area.

I read that from June this year, the G-68 PET-PSMA scan is available on the NHS. Not sure how one would access it and which bit of the NHS would pay for it!

Cheers, John.

User
Posted 13 Sep 2019 at 16:47

Hi Lyn,  the question mark after PNI is purely because I've googled PNI & PCa & can't find anything about it, only PIN, so wondering if it's just a typo. Thanks for replying & forwarding the link.  Steve

 

User
Posted 13 Sep 2019 at 16:56
PNI, or perineural invasion, means that the cancer has spread into the channels occupied by the nerves. It's important because PNI is a mechanism through which the cancer can spread outside the prostate.

Best wishes,

Chris

User
Posted 13 Sep 2019 at 17:17

Thanks Chris, that clarifies things, I honestly thought it was a Typo on the letter to my GP. I guess the good news is that it's only on the Right hand side😭😭. Cheers Steve

 
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