Difficult diagnosis

I have replied on your other thread; yes it is possible but very rare and since your consultant (who you have said is one of the leaders in this field) has ruled out any need for further tests I think you need to trust his judgment. He does not believe that you have any mets; your aches and pains may be due to aging or simply because you are so anxious. 

Edited by member 17 Jan 2020 at 20:21  | Reason: Not specified

I don’t understand your observation - why is it not possible for the lymph nodes in the chest next to the armpit to be sore and enlarged as a result of the prostate? 

Hi Rennie. 

I do feel for you and your health anxiety. Although you have seen an expert , had  tests etc but still believe you have cancer perhaps it would not be a waste of money to get another expert opinion and undergo further testing with an MRI etc.  You certainly cannot go on like this indefinitely.

However if you are given the same opinion again how will you feel? Will you still not believe them however many professionals you see?

Case in point, my younger sister suffers from health anxiety ( some would say Hypochondria) and she wasted several years thinking she had cancer despite all the tests etc. 15 years has passed and she is still cancer free. It was only after about five years that she accepted she did not have it but what a waste of time worrying and not getting on with her life.

So maybe thinking about getting your 2nd opinions and tests done sooner than later, perhaps setting yourself a timescale and once you get the ok accept it and move forward in your life putting this time of worry behind you.

Best wishes

Ann

I have had these symptoms with the exception of the chest lymph nodes which are recent for over three and a half months now. 

Is that a realistic time for advanced aggressive prostate cancer to spread? 

Let me go over the progression of my symptoms: four months ago I had sharp pains in the anus, griping pains. They lasted a week. I googled them and a suggestion was problems with the prostate. At about the same time I had pain in the left buttock, leg, groin and a burning sensation in the spine. I put those together and went to see a urologist who specialises in prostate cancer. 

On no other evidence that my low PSA he assured me that it was not cancer. But suggested a CT scan to look at the internal organs. The CT scan was clear. I then had a MRI scan of the spine which indicated that there was mild degeneration of the spine in accordance with my age. Then jumping to the present I still have these symptoms intermittently, but have the addition of the painful lymph nodes. As there was no evidence of the main internal organs being affected it seemed to me on balance that the origin of my symptoms was the prostate- which is the only organ not fully investigated. It seems clear to me and consequently I will have an MRI of the prostate. I think that reason is clear to me now. That is what I should have done in the first place but I was more than anxious when I made those decisions. Well just have to wait and see, but the whole episode has been one of obsession as you rightly observed. I guess U came online to see if anyone else had had a similar experience. 

Edited by member 18 Jan 2020 at 21:16  | Reason: should be I not Ub

We can all understand your rational / irrational fear of cancer, and you are not the first person to contact this forum about it and you certainly won’t be the last.

I hope the MRI puts your anxiety to bed, and then you can start worrying about something more important such as the effects of Brexit! 😉😂😂😂

Best of luck anyway.

Cheers, John.

Not sure which NHS website you have been looking at but the NHS website page on my screen says:

Prostate cancer does not usually cause any symptoms until the cancer has grown large enough to put pressure on the tube that carries urine from the bladder out of the penis (urethra).

"Symptoms of prostate cancer can include:

needing to pee more frequently, often during the night
needing to rush to the toilet
difficulty in starting to pee (hesitancy)
straining or taking a long time while peeing
weak flow
feeling that your bladder has not emptied fully
blood in urine or blood in semen
These symptoms do not always mean you have prostate cancer. Many men's prostates get larger as they get older because of a non-cancerous condition called prostate enlargement.

Signs that the cancer may have spread include bone and back pain, a loss of appetite, pain in the testicles and unexplained weight loss."

https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/prostate-cancer/symptoms/ 

Hope this has put your mind at rest about Pca at least. Nevertheless probable Prostatitis warrants further investigation if it is that. Mayo says https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/prostatitis/diagnosis-treatment/drc-20355771

Edited by member 19 Jan 2020 at 18:45  | Reason: to highlight link