Anxious wait for biopsy results

User

Posted 22 Dec 2022 at 12:00

I’m 77 years old and I’m currently waiting for the results of my transperineal biopsy carried out on 10th December. Just getting frustrated with not knowing.

Background. I’d called the GP in the early part of the year with problems peeing, painful and frequent nocturne visits to the loo. After various calls and urine tests I managed to get a prescription for Tamsulosin, I also asked for a PSA test which for some reason was deleted from my annual check up visit a few months earlier. After a month the immediate pain problem had reduced but still had a high number of visits to the loo especially at night. I had a PSA test early May this came back as 5.96 and the GP referred me for a trip to the Urology dept. I got an appointment for late October but feeling somewhat unsure of what was going and not having any face to face visits with the GP I decided to book and appointment at the local Spire with a Urologist. He reported an enlarged prostate, DRE, guessed at around 60 – 80 cc and suggested I keep the October appointment, get an MRI and also I might need to go onto Finasteride at some point if my symptoms got any worse.

October visit, agreed with the enlarged prostrate and prescribed Finasteride as I was back to 5 visits a night, PSA 6.11, and booked an MRI.

MRI reported 105cc volume, PIRADS-4 left PZ, PIRADS-3 Lt TZ, T2N0, Urologist booked a local anaesthetic transperineal prostrate biopsy with I had on 10th Dec.

So here I am waiting to know where we are? I’ve found the PCUK kit really good and have lurked on the forum as a guest for a few weeks but wanted to post to see if anyone can offer comments, advice? I have got my check list prepared but is there anything I should be thinking about?

User

Posted 22 Dec 2022 at 13:06

You know, I'm sure, that at your age you almost certainly do have prostate cancer, but that doesn't automatically mean that treatment is required - most men die with prostate cancer, not from it. Your PSA is only a little above what would be considered normal for your age.

Honestly all you can do is wait for the diagnostic process to reach a conclusion, and then you'll know where you stand and what (if any) treatment is required. If you do get treatment the basic choices are surgery or radiotherapy (which comes in several forms) but you may also be offered Active Surveillance, where they basically just keep an eye on it with regular tests and make sure it's not doing anything nasty.

Best wishes,

Chris

User

Posted 22 Dec 2022 at 13:19

Thanks Chris. I do understand that at my age it’s almost inevitable that I will have prostate cancer of some form and the probability is reasonable good that I’ll die of some other cause. It’s just the waiting around for a full diagnosis that’s the pain right now. However, appreciate you comments.

User

Posted 22 Dec 2022 at 13:27

It's the hardest part of the whole process, unfortunately; I found the waiting worse than the subsequent treatment. You've done the difficult bit (the biopsy). All you can do now is just take things a day at a time and try to put it out of your mind (which goodness knows I know isn't easy). If your biopsy results come back positive you'll probably have one more diagnostic test: a bone scan just to make sure it hasn't spread (this is purely routine) and then you'll know where you stand and what the options are.

Nothing else you can do at this point, unfortunately. M

Best wishes,

Chris

User

Posted 22 Dec 2022 at 13:46

Thanks again, I did find the biopsy somewhat more than uncomfortable 😳. I’m afraid I’m one of nature’s worriers and after a nocturnal visit to the loo may lay awake and ponder the option obviously including Active Surveillance. I have a friend who’s been on AS for over 7 years and is fine but unfortunately another who has just received his last dose of chemo after a few years of many other treatments, he’s had success and then reoccurrence.

I’ve found following other people’s progress, good and bad, as discussed on here very useful.

User

Posted 22 Dec 2022 at 13:57

I am in fairly similar position to yourself although it is unusual for me to be able to say nowadays that I am a couple of years younger than someone else ! I did go through the diagnostic process in 2020 when no cancer was found.

I was referred back to Cheltenham General Hospital in September following a gradual increase in PSA to 19.2. I had an MRI on 6 October & a Transperineal Biopsy, under a general anaesthetic, on 24 November, with a meeting, hopefully to review the biopsy findings, scheduled for 5 January. My prostate matches yours at 105cc & I have been on both Finasteride & Tamsulosin for a number of years.

Waiting for the results dominates my thinking & I have only a minimal interest in the approaching holiday period. I am perhaps being slightly 'crackers' in hoping for a positive biopsy finding but am desperate for a 'not too bad' cancer to be found so that it can be treated & 'normal service be resumed' as soon as possible. I have convinced myself, perhaps wrongly, that a programme of HT & RT isn't going to be too bad - once I would have welcomed Active Surveillance but I now feel that I would prefer that it be 'dealt with' if 'it is there' rather than live with uncertainty

User

Posted 22 Dec 2022 at 14:29

Hi Grafton, I can fully understand how you feel and have had similar thoughts as yourself. Weird really but I guess it’s the way the mind works and of course each of us is different and we handle things in different ways. I’ve been fairly desperate to at least have a date for a discussion or better still some numbers and diagnosis before the Christmas period even knowing that I’d only have a couple of weeks between the biopsy and the holiday. The inpatient letter did say I’d have an outpatient appointment with histology in 2 weeks but I figured that would be unlikely.

I hope that things go well for you when you have your review on the 5th Jan, hopefully a new year and a new you.

User

Posted 22 Dec 2022 at 17:01

Originally Posted by: Online Community Member

I have convinced myself, perhaps wrongly, that a programme of HT & RT isn't going to be too bad - once I would have welcomed Active Surveillance but I now feel that I would prefer that it be 'dealt with' if 'it is there' rather than live with uncertainty

If it’s any comfort to you, I went down the HT/RT route (strongly recommended in my case) and didn’t find it too bad. A few weeks rather tied to the loo towards the end of RT, but overall no more than mildly unpleasant. Happy to answer any questions you may have about this treatment.

Best wishes,

Chris

User

Posted 26 Jan 2023 at 11:16

I received a letter for the consultant today saying that the biopsy samples showed no evidence of prostate cancer. I would need to attend the clinic regularly to monitor the effects of the Tamsulosin and Finasteride and general BPH symptoms.

Delighted but also understand the results are only meaningful in respect of the samples taken, no other information was provided.

So I’m not sure if this is WW or AS, I’ll obviously try to clarify at some point.

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