Around the first of January I noticed that I was having lower back pain so I went the
doctor for a checkup toward the end of the month. My lower back ached and my right hip was
shooting pain mostly while I was standing still. I thought it was probably arthritus. After my
initial checkup the doctor wanted me to come back the following week for lab work. They
had found a touch of blood in my urine.
During the first visit I had x-rays and when I came back for the lab work they ran an
ultrasound on my kidneys as they had seen a kidney stone in my left kidney.
I called the doctor for my report about three days later and the nurse told me everything
looked alright except I did have a kidney stone and my blood test indicated that my PSA was
4.7 which indicated that my prostate needed to be looked at because anything over 4.0 was
abnormal. She made an appointment with the urologist for the following weekend which was
last Friday. The urologist did the Digital thing and
scheduled me for x-rays and dye on my kidneys next weekend. The following week he is going
to do an ultrasound biopsy. That is where I am at this stage.
February 28, 1997.
I was supposed to have had my biopsy today but it has been postponed until Tuesday. They did the dye thing last Friday to check on my kidney stone.
I haven't heard the results of those test yet.
March 5, 1997
I had my biopsy yesterday at about 9:00 A.M. A little bit about it. The nurse told me to take off my pants and shorts,
put on the gown and get on the table. After a short while the doctor came in and told me to turn on my
side, that he was going to insert the transrectal ultrasound device into my rectum and look at my prostate first and then
he would take three biopsies on each side. After scanning my prostate he said he was ready to do the needle
biopsies. He said he would count to three and do it. He said it would feel like a dull thump and a prick which is
exactly how it felt. He did this six times and it was over. Not too bad, just uncomfortable.
Bleeding has always been a major concern with me. I have always had trouble bleeding.
When I have teeth pulled they nearly always hemorage. Also sometimes during the seventies I had gallbladder surgery.
When I was in recovery, I was told to take deep breaths. I could not. They said my blood preasure was 20 over 10. Needless
to say I was rushed back into surgery. I was bleeding on the inside. The next time when I woke up in recovery I felt a lot better.
The drive home was about sixty miles. At home the first thing I did was go to the bathrom. I did a bowel movement
and it was all blood. After that I went to bed but had to use the bathroom just about on the hour. Each time blood poured out.
About 1:00 P.M. I had another bowel movement and started feeling really dizzy and nausiated. My wife was in the back bedroom so
I decided to try and make in to my bed. I made it to the door before I passed out and collapsed to my knees. I was then able to crawl
to my bed. I had another similar episode just before 3:00 P.M. going to the bathroom and getting dizzy. This time I just sat on the pot
until I was able to make it to my bed. My wife called the doctor and he
said he would check me into the hospital and they could pack my rectum but that he didn't think I was going to bleed to death and that
the dizzy spells were because of the bowel movements. I decided to stay home and see how things worked out. As it turned out I had
no more problems. I didn't have to use the bathroom that night and the next morning the bleeding had for the most part stopped.
Now comes the hard part. The waiting.
March 6, 1997
The nurse called about 2:30 P.M. The test came back negative. She said I needed to have my PSA checked in about six months. I feel
really relieved. I did have an ace in the hole though. I had a lot of people praying for me and I intend to thank them tonight.
Now my main worry is the kidney stone. The doctor not to worry about it as long as it remained where it is.
March 13, 1997
POSTSCRIPT
I went to work last Monday and after bringing my suitcase into the motel, noticed that I had started bleeding from the rectum. As it turns out, I ended up in the hospital hemoraging and nearly passing out
several times. A gastrointestinal surgeon cauterized a spot that was bleeding and I was released from the hospital yesterday. I plan to take the next two weeks off before attempting to go to work again.
All of this was my fault because my urologist had told me to do no heavy lifting. I was warned that there could be bleeding for up to a month.
The prostate is a small gland about the size of a walnut. It is found only in men. It surrounds the first part of the tubes (urethra) which carries urine from the
bladder to the penis. The same tube also carries semen. The prostate produces a thick clear fluid which is an important part of the semen. The growth and function
of the prostate gland depends on the male sex hormone, (testosterone), which is produced in the testes. Some treatments for prostate cancer only work because they
reduce the levels of testosterone.
A sample of your blood is checked for PSA (prostate specific antigen). PSA is a protein produced by both normal and cancerous prostate cells. A high level
of PSA can be a sign of cancer but your PSA level can also be raised in benign prostate conditions. The higher the level of PSA the more likely it is to be cancer. Any reading
over 4.0 is considered to be in the abnormal range and needs further examination.
Your doctor places a gloved finer into your rectum to feel your porstate and check for anything which is not normal.
The ultrasound scan and needle biopsy are done together. The ultrasound scan uses sound waves to build up a picture of the inside of your body. To scan
the prostate gland a small probe is passed into your rectum. The image appears on a screen. The scan measures the exact size of your prostate and can detect abnormal areas within the
prostate. The needle biopsy can be done at the same time. A small needle is put into the prostate through your rectum. A sample of cells is drawn into a syringe. The process takes only a few minutes.
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