Hello Mike and All UFPI gave me an estimate of charges, completely itemized, with a few disclaimers. It mentions in three places that 'this is an estimate',...
Please welcome Bill smith, who says: "I'm considering proton treatment for PCa but have not definitely decided to go ahead. I need information and will share...
Welcome Bill, I 'm so glad to hear that you are willing to become an informed patient and not just taking the first option given to you. You will find much...
To all our friends here, When I first went to my urologist, I had to admit to willful ignorance about the prostate in spite of Dad having PCa. I asked him,...
FROM the NY Times: August 27, 2008, 9:26 am Regrets After Prostate Surgery One in five men who undergoes prostate surgery to treat cancer later regrets the...
I saw quite a bit of discussion on this news story in other prostate cancer venues. The comments ranged from "so 4 out of 5 people have no regrets?" to "this...
Mike, I am very surprised that you have said that your backup plan is robotic surgery if your health insurance does not cover protons. If protons had been...
Well, I'm not too keen on most of the other radiation options. The side effects for other external radiation seem to be very similar to surgery. And while...
Mike, Let me echo Laurel, and strongly recommend that you have IG-IMRT or IMRT at a facility/hospital with modern up-to-date equipment as your backup plan. ...
In looking rationally at options (being an engineer) I find it very difficult to find non-biased data on the various options with respect to ED rates,...
I assume most members of this list were unbiased at one time but now they are biased....As they should be. I start PBT next Monday. I plan on being totally...
Mike, if it gets that far, and I sincerely hope it does not, ask the robotic guy what his definitions of incontinence and impotence are? Many of the docs...
Steve, WooHoo! Keep us posted on how you do during treatment. I predict it will be a piece of cake. I am the first to admit my very strong bias pro protons and...
Please be sure to read the testimonials on this page. http://www.protonbob.com/ Some are from scientists and others who give their stories to tell how life...
Laurel, Those are definitely good questions. My doctor said that there may be some leakage for a while (as long as a year) and ED is an issue. I told him,...
Fuller, One issue not discussed about surgery is that even if you take care of the catheter, the balloon can deflate and irritate the urethra, causing an...
Dear Nancy and John, All who might like to relate your proton experience here (no matter how brief or how long, please do so and/or if you like, post it in the...
... "Dear Members, Several members have brought to my attention the fact that the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) have made a proposal to stop...
I received a message that my comment was received. They did not say that it was accepted. Here is what I submitted: This is a notification that CMS has...
Right, at one time I was totally unbiased. In fact I was so scared and confused that I would have done anything! Luckily the Lupron gave me time to learn and...
Fuller - That is a great letter and thanks for all that you do. I got the note from Bob M. about the challenge and I'm going to forward it to the proton...
If it was received it will become part of the permanent record. I submit comments for various govt and legislative hearings all the time because of my...
I went to the site and put in my 2 cents worth, hopefully helping the cause. ... re: Proton beam therapy for prostate cancer As one who has been researching...
What Bias? PBRT was the way to go for me. Not a blind decision. It's just the best option available after doing a lot of research. I even remember asking on...
Hey Everyone! In the information provided to us at treatment time (at Loma Linda), we see that DRE is recommended to be done after the blood is drawn for PSA....
Hi John. If your "follow-up" visits after PBT are done by a urologist, you should not have to "request" a DRE. But I guess some of them need to be told....
This will be my one and only post here that even remotely relates to politics, but it affects us all: "Absolutely The Funniest Joke Ever! (and it was "ON US !)...
I'm fortunate in that I live 15 miles from the MDACC med center and I'm using my radiation oncologist as my urologist. The schedule set for me was a 3 month...
Nancy, My husband Paul's local urologist who is doing the follow-up post PBT at Loma Linda says that he only does a DRE in this type of situation if he thinks...
PSA does not tell the entire story. I would not have been diagnosed originally had it been based upon PSA alone. My PSA at diagnosis was 0.8. A nodule was...
