Hismones 03/22/25

Halfway! Friday marked treatment 22 of 44 and so far I haven't had to miss any. Making sure the bladder is full upon arrival is required, and based on that struggle emptying the bladder immediately after treatment is also necessary. What do I think after half of radiation is done? I wish I'd have known and had more explained before starting this process, but I think we will get through okay anyway. I'm getting more control of diarrhea by reducing fiber intake and using Immodium, but hormone therapy is something I don't wish on anyone. I don't know how female cancer patients who are placed on long-term hormone therapy handle it,but I'm hoping their experience is different. Chronic fatigue with joint pain and feeling like I'm losing my gender aren't encouraging outcomes. I did have a positive visit with a new doctor Friday, a vascular surgeon. I was referred by my cardiologist due to blockage in the carotid arteries. This referral sets me up for closer monitoring. The surgeon said my level of blockage is well controlled with medication and will see me in six months for a fresh ultrasound evaluation. And last but not least is the way I drove at a local race track this week! On Wednesday, I took my daughter's '99 Miata to Motor Sport Ranch at Cresson (between FW and Granbury) to drive for the first time as a Novice at the SCCA Track Night in America event Wednesday. I may be old but I am slow! My left arm was a bit sore from waving so many other drivers by to pass, but I had a very good first experience. I plan to return on a day in which I can pay somewhat more to have an instructor's help, because I can tell the car is much more capable than I am at this point. At 73, I'm realizing a decades-old dream of driving on a race track. God and my wife and daughter are good. I even had the unexpected free excitement of spinning when a car close in front of me had a coolant system failure and dumped antifreeze on the track. I saw the car off the track ahead of me, hood up and steaming, and slowed down a lot but didn't see the liquid on the track in time. I spun harmlessly, not hitting or breaking anything (or needing to change clothes!). I plan to go to the track this weekend to contact an instructor and in May to drive again. By then, radiation treatments should be ended. I'm viewing videos by the Prostate Cancer Research Institute based in LA, CA that suggest hormone therapy for 70+ age men may not be necessary, so once the PSA tests are showing low or no activity, I may press for stopping the hormone pill at least for a while. As someone cleverly said, "We'll burn that bridge when we get to it." All the best to you this weekend!

Hismones 03/14/25

Happy Friday!? This morning was treatment 17, so 27 to go and still headed toward April 22 as last treatment. It seems remarkably easy to underestimate the cumulative effects of radiation and hormone therapy. I take a pill daily and have about a 90-second treatment daily that leaves no visible physical evidence, at least not yet. The main issue is that life is different, with fatigue and intestinal distress being significantly restrictive. During the summer between high school graduation and starting college, I spent off-work time reading the four books of the Tolkien "Trilogy" (early "new math?") and learning to wiggle my ears, not an insignificant achievement when done well. The past few weeks I have been trying to learn a new skill, much less pleasant but no less challenging: defecating without urinating, in which I have been mostly but not entirely successful. Abdominal radiation tends to cause diarrhea, sometimes but not always controlled by OTC medications, and I find myself bathroom-bound at least three times between my rising at 5 A.M. (lights out at 10 P.M., awake at 4 A.M. but forcing myself to stay in bed another hour) and leaving at 7:40 A.M. for my 8:15 A.M. sessions. I have to arrive with a full bladder (moves bowel structures out of radiation harm's way) or risk not being treated. A friend is farther along in his treatment plan than I but is trying to work full-time while having severe intestinal issues. He missed a treatment earlier this week due to dehydration and was too ill this morning for treatment. He finds himself hospitalized this evening for fluid infusion and has been told his work schedule must change during treatment. Retirement for me is a huge blessing through this process, and I pray for his health daily. Downsides of increased bathroom time are increased use of tissue and water; one upside is that I'm completing Large-Print Bible Word Searches much faster, books given me almost a year ago during hip replacement convalescence. "Aging isn't for sissies." I do find that an attitude of gratitude and a smile go a long way to make every day more pleasant. Sometimes just asking a clerk or cashier or med tech...or doctor, "How are you today?" can make their day a little lighter and brighter. And I haven't run out of projects at home. I replaced a hose clamp on my wife's car, solving a slow coolant leak; pulled the spark plugs and valve cover off the Miata I've borrowed from my daughter for track time, finding the engine in excellent shape but ready for new plugs which now have been ordered; changed the oil in said car and had it checked/certified tech-ready for my first adventure at SCCA Track Night in Cresson next week; performed a Redneck repair on my own car, cleaning and repainting a bumper corner that had accidentally been scraped by a friend at our men's choir concert last week; and managed to break a windshield washer part on my car while trying to unclog the system. At least, parts are available and inexpensive. I suppose it's a combination of age and treatment: I feel ridiculously tired and sore most evenings and look forward to lying very still in bed, but amazingly most mornings, especially after exercise, I'm ready to go again. I'm curious how well treatment is working, whether my PSA has dropped precipitously as anticipated, but my doctors (urologist and oncologist) have ganged up on me. My next PSA check will be one month after radiation ends, or 5/22/25. My concern is that my cancer is acting normally, with both androgen deprivation and radiation eliminating it. A very small percentage (but not zero) of prostate cancers don't respond to "ADT" and require additional medication/treatment. I.hate.to.wait. It won't hurt to get more clarification at my weekly oncology appointment after treatment next Tuesday.

Hismones 03/06/25

"Pick your battles." I told the radiation oncologist at our weekly Tuesday meeting: "I may get to have urological, orthopedic, and cardiovascular surgeries this year with no additional co-insurance costs, thanks to radiation treatments." His smile was a sort of "You're welcome." My recent ED specialist visit last week resulted in long-term recommendations for either self-administered injections or a surgical implant, to which the oncologist agreed. I'm out of commission for now due to lack of full function accompanied by pain, so I'll ask some more questions to address short-term concerns. I just completed radiation treatment 11 of 44 this morning. I'm not sure whether I have additional fatigue but there are certainly intestinal issues, so Immodium is a brand-new addition. I did learn an interesting technical fact yesterday, that the treatment machine irradiates virtually full circle, the table on which I lie being made of carbon fiber to allow the beam to pass through. In the cardiovascular arena, because of some recent dizziness, my family's strong stroke history, and previous carotid blockage identified, I had both a carotid ultrasound and CT scan in the past couple of weeks. One of the arteries is now at 52% blockage, so I'm being referred to a cardiovascular surgeon for closer monitoring with likely an endarterectomy in my future, sooner or later. And then there was the follow up visit Monday to a hand surgeon because of significant arthritis pain in my right hand. He's recommending a "remodeling" surgery to my thumb which should relieve pain and retain most function. So am I having three surgeries this year? Likely not, but probably the thumb revision in late summer. I haven't seen the cardiovascular surgeon yet and I'm not sure what the percentage tipping point is to recommend surgery rather than monitoring and medication. I'm headed to the Benbrook Y shortly for the second of my four introductory personal trainer sessions, hopefully resulting in a weekly exercise regimen that will help maintain muscle mass during hormone therapy, muscle mass loss typically being one of the side effects. Tammy continues to be a heroine, adjusting to my changes, appointments, and attempt to become plant-based in my eating. She has been researching recipes and ingredients ("These vegan things aren't cheap!"), trying a new and unfamiliar menu. I am volunteering monthly at one of my former teaching campuses for Academy 4 (4th grade mentoring) and Leaders 5 (helping 5th graders mentor 2nd graders) and begin Monday a weekly reading support for struggling students. At home, I'm trying to stay busy this week by updating cabinet hardware and working on my old (not "classic") commuter vehicle, along with daily exercise. God is good. I'm sitting in a comfortable paid-for home with plenty of food, clothing, and shelter shared with a wonderful life companion and communicating regularly with daughters who love us and each other. My six year old granddaughter visited us for the weekend. She's always been pretty distant toward me, but wanted to hug me when she left and told me she loved me. Life could be so.much.worse.