Six Months - Happy Independence Day!

Special Post

Wow.  Hard to believe that it was six months ago today that I was being wheeled into surgery on a competitor's stretcher!

Friday, I had an appointment with my personal physician to just follow up on all that's happened in those six months.  She was pleased with my progress and outcome and really had no significant concerns or suggestions for me.

In some ways, I was tempted to have her run a PSA test on me, but I'll be patient and wait for the 4 August 2011 appointment and the results on 11 August.  The surgeon really wanted to use the same lab to make sure that the process allowed for an apples-to-apples comparison with the February test results.

Another reason not to do it last Friday was insurance.  I'm still fighting with the hospital and insurance company over the second stay in January, and the last thing I need is for them to question why I have two PSA tests within a month of each other.  That would take until 2027 to resolve.  :-)

Finally, I added a new page to the blog, "Life After Prostatectomy."  It's really intended for fellow prostate cancer patients, as it's an open discussion of my experience with incontinence and sexual function.  If you don't want to know about that kind of thing, don't read it!  :-)

So that's it on this six-month anniversary.  More on Thursday.

Week 33 - Regression

So it's been a quiet week again... Same routine at work with not much new to report.

BIOLOGY AHEAD

A few weeks ago, I reported that the itchy feeling in my urethra--that gave me the near constant urge to urinate--had finally gone away.  It's been back again for the last few days.  I'm not sure what that means other than it may be a dip in the roller coaster ride that the surgeon forewarned me about months ago.

I'm not overly concerned about it for now.  It's still just a nuisance.  No pads are needed--I just run to the bathroom more than I really need to just to be safe.

Just before my surgery, my family physician scheduled a 6-month follow-up visit with her, and that appointment is tomorrow morning.  I'll mention it to her, but I really don't expect that she'll say much other than "talk to the surgeon."

In some ways, I'd like her to take the blood sample for the PSA test tomorrow, but the surgeon was pretty adamant about his office / lab doing the testing.  He wanted to make sure that the same lab did all the tests to eliminate possible inconsistencies between lab procedures that could alter the results.  That, or he's looking for a couple of hundred bucks for the test and consultation.  :)

Week 32 - Ho-hum

Yep.  Another quite week here in the cornfields.  At least as far as my recovery is concerned (no biology updates needed).  As far as work, well....

My boss was on vacation this week, so I was his designated back-up.  Between his scheduled meetings and my own, I spent from 7 AM to 3 PM in back to back meetings--even one that ran through lunch (11-1).  Ugh.

We also said good-bye to another coworker who opted to head to Seattle and a new opportunity there.

Maybe I should start a countdown...  7 weeks from today, I should have my next PSA results.  That's not all that far off.

So that's about it from here for now.