Advanced prostat cancer part 2

Not been on here for some time but your humour, Julie, always makes me smile, what with Trevor up a ladder, was he trying to catch up his PSA? Your puppie certificate! What about the boys though.

ALL THE VERY BEST.

Chris. xx

Poor old Yodie he is turned 14 bald as a coot and coughing for England his time line is running out (he is a dog. By the way ) so when do we get the chance to concentrate on Cancer, well to be honest not that often but today has been one of those days when The big C has taken priority.

So the results of the CT scan are inconclusive they are going to the MDT meeting this Thursday, the Wiz has looked and can't see anything to worry about. Raduim 223 is of the table it is a no go unless chemo is given first.

PSA is know up to 994 so a rise of just over 200 in four weeks , s*** not quite what we had hoped but to be honest pretty much as I had suspected. Trevor's energy levels have dropped dramatically and back pain is increasing.

The chemo card was brought up and this is where things get a bit tricky the Wiz bless her this is the first time that I have seen her faulter, she very gently explained to Trevor that the chances of him surviving chemo are slim.

So what do you do , well we are all differnt but for us we came home and life goes on as normal. NORMAL what the pig is normal well it's our normal.

BFN

Julie X

Oh love, I really hoped they would say chemo was worth a try - did it seem that the Wiz might consider one or two rounds or did she think even that would be too much for him? Is Radium 223 available after ANY chemo or does it have to be the full lot?

And did she say anything about the fact that Radium might be available without chemo on the Cancer Drugs Fund?

And how did you get the peanut butter to float on the water in the dustbin?

If your cooking was nicer he wouldn't have had to resort to washing machine hoses and the like. He' d be going through the bins :-))
A nasty fate for any animal , but just like wasps they really don't know when to pack their bags and move on.
I'm not sure of all the intricacies and criteria that lead to what treatments can be given when with this awful disease, but I'm hoping they find a way forward for you both that suits you as best as possible.
Chris x

A bit of a conundrum. Whilst I understand the reasoning behind radium after chemo in a situation where cheeks refused by the medics surely they should be able to say it's our decision so in this case let's try radium 223. If not as others have suggested if a single dose would unblock the rules worth a discussion. Meanwhile keep going and stay strong! I know you both will!

What a tale you tell, rats at dawn, good riddance and a burial at sea, excellent result.

Not great news re Trevor and his incredible PSA, in fact he's such an incredible man I wonder that they don't try chemo just based on his amazing constitution. I guess it's time to take stock and see what happens. It's a frightening time, not knowing what's next, I have another friend in this position, nothing else to be done but simply go home and enjoy whatever life is left. I think quality of life is everything, as long as your man is enjoying your company, his boys, the dogs and a bit of rat catching on the side then you are all doing everything you can for him.

There are no words of solace Julie, we are all just attempting to keep you buoyed up, we know your legendary spirit and amazing work rate. If there is anything that can be done for Trevor, then I'm sure he'd rather have you on his side, than anyone else.

Hugs and love and a very soggy comfort blanket (from the secret tears) on their way to you (I think Rosy has it at the moment).

Love

Devonmaid xxx

It is catch twenty two with the Raduim apparently the Wiz has to authorise the chemo and then wait and see what happens before she can apply to the drugs fund for the Raduim, what a conundrum and somewhere in the midst of this we go round and round.

For know we continue with Abi even though we all know it is not working but I suppose it is better the Devil you know than the Devil you don't.

Our options are very limited so even though Abi is not working as we had hoped it maybe slowing the progression.

Just to answer my SS (Mo) it is the heart issues that is holding her back, I have been worried about saying this for others who may be reading and would be worried with similar issues but then I thought warts and all , Trevor has around 35 per cent heart function due to the heart attacks in the past and the chemo is likely to weaken that , of course my worry is if we wait then he will be weaker in general so to then put him through chemo. ( I suppose you can all see where I am going with that)!

Oh ok so a rock and a hard place, it's OK Guys there are no easy platitudes , we have known from day one and that is almost 3 years ago where this was headed, if you don't know what to say , I understand just say hi keep going girl.

Talking about keep going when we came out from the a appointment on Mon Trevor always astounds me for just a split second I thought just maybe he might need, or want to talk and then that moment passed in a nano second and I thought he is going to ask about lunch. Sure enough he said "are you hungry" of course I wasn't but said yes what do you fancy. How about M&S he said so that is where we eneded up, he had the healthy option of spiced salmon with spiralised carrot and courgette spaghetti (yum yum I don't think so)) he then polished of my ham and cheese toastie as well . I was to upset to eat . It always amazes me how he can eat after receiving the worst news. A stranded whale of Bognor Beach on the news would put me of my dinner.

BFN

Julie X

Nice description, all makes sense now.

We have a friend with a little girl. When she was 3 I asked her one day "did you do anything nice at the stables?" She replied (dressed in her fairy tutu and looking angelic with her blonde ringlets) "yes, we killed baby rats" I was horrified but thought may be a mistake. No, mum explained that they sent the dog in to the hay and then when all the rats ran out it was all hands to the decks to squish them all. Even my beautiful angel child. Country folk are tough.

You are not tough but you are strong. T is Tough with a capital T. Perhaps he has that amazing superhuman skill that my John has perfected - being able to completely eradicate bad things from the memory so they simply did not happen. Lovey, if it works it works.

The wiz knows what she is doing, just have to trust the strange convoluted NHS hoops I suppose. Certainly, chemo is not the heart's best friend and some chemo is worse than others. The hospital told us that Stan's heart failure was caused by the chemo (when they eventually managed to organise themselves and diagnose him) - of course, the delay wasn't all their fault .... Stan had a heart attack but didn't mention it to anyone because he didn't think it was serious and he had a holiday planned. Mother-in-law still regrets Stan having the chemo - my view was that it was worth the risk.

Between you and T and the Wiz, you will know when and if the risks are a better bet than the doing nothing and gently letting go. As always, you are on my mind xxx

Hi Julie
Just wanted you to know I am thinking of you and T a lot. You've been right through the mill and it's now getting even tougher. I admire your strength and humour and whilst it's normally bad news these days , you always make me smile.
Before they re-vamped the entrance of Southampton hospital ( still not finished ) there was a Burgerking inside. Elaine would frown as I wolfed down a bacon-double , fries and milkshake , even after endlessly worse news. My little treat ha.
Sending wishes and love x