My Good and Bad News

I do need to tell you, dear reader, what happened Wednesday at my visit with the specialist at the Cancer Center here in Windsor. This was the place where I was supposed to go to learn more information about what treatments were needed based on the recent diagnosis.  

My meeting was scheduled to start at about 1 PM. I was told that it was going to take place over at least a three hour time period. The difficult part of it was that I had to drink 4 big glasses of water just before the meeting started since I would have to do some further tests.  I was right, I started at about 12:15 PM to drink the water, completed the tests and then waited to meet my oncologist. 

The oncologist told me directly that I was suffering from prostate cancer and it is one that is more aggressive (Gleason Score of 8) than other kinds.  While that confirmed what I really believed before, I was still upset at what he told me. I did not expect it to be that bad. I just assumed that it really was a “pre-cancerous” situation I was going through and I just had to get some minor procedures done so I would not get the disease. The reality was, I was wrong. 

To be direct, I did ask him about how serious my situation was. I had heard that if I had a really serious case of cancer, my life expectancy might only be a couple of years more.  He was pretty direct with his answer. He thought that my situation was a good one. Nevertheless, there could be problems at the end of this treatment and of course, he could not guarantee what would happen but he felt optimistic. Based on the hormone therapy treatment I had already started from my specialist, which reduces the amount of testosterone in my body, the likelihood of me being successful is approximately 75%.

I was very impressed with him and his ability to make me feel relaxed especially during this difficult time. We spent a good amount of time talking about what I was going through respecting my health issues. In addition, he answered a number of questions that I had about the process that I would be going through and I never felt rushed. I appreciated his genuine care and concern. I also really liked the nurses and just overall staff and volunteers. Everyone was so friendly and being in this atmosphere made the situation less fearful. 

I have to go through 40 rounds of radiation, 5 days a week for about 8 weeks. There will be some testing in September done prior to treatment.  It shouldn't be a long time at each visit.  Although a visit is scheduled for an hour, it should probably take about 20 minutes or so. If there are complications, it could take longer. He went through how radiation worked and how my individual treatment will focus on getting rid of the bad cells, so this information was very useful.  Every person is different, so I will just see how my body reacts. 

Now you know what my situation is and what I will be going through for the next several months. I intend to maintain a very positive view of what will happen and what my result will be. 

And don’t worry. You will hear about it too!

PS. The walk to and from the hospital from where we parked this time was a lengthy one. Thankfully the weather was warm, but it was still exhausting due to the heat. There wasn't a single spot available in the lot or around the area. Since we will be going 5 days a week, I am wondering if any of my friends who do live by the hospital (near Kildare Ave) would allow us to  park at their home for approximately half an hour to an hour per day? It may be various times or a specific schedule for the course of my treatments. These issues are still unknown until my next appointment.  If so, please contact me on Facebook messenger or you can contact my daughter, Melissa, on Facebook.