Prostate cancer

I am not a medical professional; this is just my personal experience. Decades ago

I began monitoring my prostate specific antigen (PSA), a blood marker for prostate cancer. It’s only one metric of a blood test.

I monitored it for 20 years while continuing to read obituaries of men dying of prostate cancer in their 60s, 70s, 80s and 90s. In my late 70s, with my PSA below 3 and stable, my general practitioner recommended no long monitoring it. His rationale was that at my age I would die of something else. How he knew how long I would live and the cause of my death, he never said.

I continued to monitor my PSA with a urologist. It suddenly began to increase, soon reaching 18. A biopsy revealed I had moderately aggressive prostate cancer. After exploring my options, I decided to be treated at the Virginia Commonwealth University hospital in Richmond. They used a low-radiation shaped-beam to radiate my prostate at daily sessions over several weeks. After treatment my PSA is 0.5. The side effects have been minimal.

My former general practitioner was correct after all; I’m not going to die of prostate cancer. Every older man needs to routinely monitor his PSA. Nearly all men have heard this advice, but some don’t always follow through. Importantly, don’t let a doctor tell you that future monitoring of your PSA is not necessary due to your age. It’s bad medical advice. Today, you have to be your own health advocate and stay informed. It’s your life, not your doctor’s.

— William Bryant, Williamsburg