Month 43 - June Prostate Cancer Fundraising Activities

It's been a pretty normal month since my last update.  That's good.  That means there is life after a radical prostatectomy.

But as far as this month's blog update is concerned, I got nuthin'.

There are, however, a couple of major fundraising activities going on in June to support the Prostate Cancer Foundation and its research.  And because those activities are ongoing or are about to happen, I'm going to publish this post a few days earlier than normal.

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The first is the PCF Home Run Challenge, where you donate either a lump sum or a specified amount for each home run hit in 98 MLB baseball games between June 9th and June 15th, Father's Day.

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Once again, the Safeway Foundation, part of the Safeway grocery store operation, is supporting prostate cancer awareness during the month of June.  Give what you can if you shop at Safeway or Vons.

Month 42 - PSA Results

It's funny.

I didn't even think much of getting my blood drawn for my six month PSA test on 30 April.  Just went in, got stuck, and went on my merry way.  No biggie.

Or so I thought.

Afterwards, I was checking my online health record twice a day looking for the results.  Hurry up and wait.  I guess modern technology has all made us wanting instant gratification, and when we don't get it, we get upset.

Once a cancer patient, there's always that little cloud of "What if?" hanging over your head.  I don't get nearly as worked up about waiting for the results as I did for my first post-surgery six month check, but it's still there.

So the results?  Still undetectable!  :)

I actually have my appointment with my urologist on Tuesday to officially go over the results.  I'm sure we'll talk about incontinence and sexual function, too.  [Edit 5/16/14: The urologist doesn't want to see me for 8 months instead of the usual 6 months.  Next PSA: January 2015.]

Oh.  And Happy Mother's Day to moms everywhere--living and departed.

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Note the new contact form to make it easier to shoot me an email if you have any questions about my experiences.

Month 41 - Biological Update

We're going to jump right in with this post...

BIOLOGY AHEAD

My niece and her three and a half-year old daughter came to visit for their spring break, and we were able to get out and do a lot of fun things together.  By the second day, my niece was chiding me about how many times I was going to the bathroom, and that got me to thinking, "Am I going more than usual?"  Or was it just her perspective.

In retrospect, I probably was running to the bathroom a tad more frequently.  Mainly because we were on the go, outside in cool air a good chunk of the time, and I never knew where the next bathroom might be, so I took advantage of using the ones nearby.  (And, no, I'm not talking every 20 minutes.  It was every couple of hours.)

As I explained to my niece, it's more that I have the urge or sensation that I need to go, than I actually do.  When I get to the bathroom, not much comes out.  Fortunately, the urges aren't the, "Oh my God, I need to find a bathroom in the next 30 seconds or I'm going to pee in my pants," kind of urges.  But they're there and they're telling my brain it's time to go when my bladder really could last a bit longer.  That can be frustrating.

And on the sexual function front, I've been quite pleased there.  I've had much better erections (near 100%) in the last month--all without chemical assistance.  Not bad for having only one nerve bundle.  As I've said before, be patient; let nature do its thing.

So that's it for this month.  Quick and simple.

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Late update: I'd encourage those recently diagnosed to read a comment left by another reader, J.R., on the "Life After Radical Prostatectomy - 36 Months Later" page.  It's an interesting perspective, and I tend to agree with him.  Losing sexual function is more difficult to adjust to than many people, including myself, thought it would be.