Herman's Prostate Fight

25/03/2024

So, it has been since December since my last post and a lot has happened and I have a lot to talk about....so sorry.

I started Chemo sessions in October of 2023 and let me tell you it has been one of the hardest things I have ever done. First, the doctor doesn't tell you everything that will happen to you in regards to side effects.

Here is what was told would or might happen:
1. Loss of hair
2. Fatigue or tiredness
3. Possible stroke for medicine

Here is what really happened:
1. Loss of hair
2. Fatigue or tiredness
3. Possible stroke for medicine
4. Metallic taste when eating, makes food uneatable
5. Fingernails and toenails turn black and fall off
6. Neuropathy in fingers and feet is painful and I can't feel my toes
7. Chemo burn/rashes on skin hurts when wet
8. Weakening of muscles in arms and legs
9. Unable to walk due to weak leg muscles, now I need a cane to walk
10. Incontinence
11. Lack of motivation to do anything
12. Skin peeling off of the bottoms of my feet

At the end of January, I finished my last 6th session of chemo which is considered one round of chemo and my doctor at the time wanted to have me do another round of 6 because my cancer had become aggressive and had spread throughout my body, but after talking about all my side effects, he decided to hold off for until my numbers are high again and to give my body a break, he said if we continued it could make them permanent.....yikes, I told him that I need to be able to walk.

He said that it would take about 10-12 weeks for the chemo to flush out of my body and hopefully, the side effects will go away. I am in my 8th week now and my taste has come back, that is all!!!!!!!

Theresa has been great with doing ALL the work around the house, she does all the shopping, drives us everywhere we go, takes out the trash, and still takes care of me, sometimes I think she is Superwoman she is amazing in my eyes. I don't know what I would do without her.

My PSA as of February was 0.7 and I weigh 376.2 lbs.

If my numbers do go up, we as a family have a hard decision to make on IF we want to do another round of chemo.

GOD bless.

26/12/2023

So, its the day after Christmas, I got to see my kids for a brief moment and I was only able to see my two Granddaughters Connie and Tessa for about tens minutes, this whole weekend I have been in bed resting in pain. We had talked about this, that we would reschedule our together time for Dec 31st for Christmas when I should be feeling much better.

It is hard with family and not being able to spend time with them, even theresa , once she is done working is basicly alone in the house for the rest of the day, even though I am in the next room, I'm asleep....I hate it.

I aslo weighed myself self today and Im down 20 lbs from October, but its because im not eating as much and I know it. Theresa is trying to keep my hydrated with water, Gatorade and HINT waters...but the reason I don't eat is everything taste like metal and not in a good way, I haven't been able to figure out what tastes good to me.......all Bread, beef, cheese, beans, pasta is metal.

I hope everyone had a great Christmas and God willing a Happy New Year!!!

Remember to tell the men in your family to get their PSA number checked at 35, no one wants this kind of Cancer.

Love,
Herman

05/12/2023

So, I wanted to give a giant shout out to my family, Theresa has been the best at taking me to my treatments and making sure I am taken care of, my kids have all taken time off of work to assist with rides to doctors offices and making dinners for Theresa and I. They all call and check on me daily or text me asking how I am feeling, it feels good knowing that the family that I helped to raise turned out just the way we wanted it too.....loving and caring.

What I didn't mention before was that during our meeting with my Oncologist back in September we asked him what the prognosis is....He said that if I decide not to the Chemo treatments and live without the pains and all the pills, etc.....I would have about 6 - 8 months to live........if I do the chemo, it will of course extend my life to about 1 - 2 years. I am 55 right now, there is so much I want to see and do, the hard part is, I know it is coming.

I quit my job and opted for more family time, I applied for SSDI and was granted it, but will not receive my first check until May 2024. Thank goodness for Theresa and her job.

My chemo should end in March 2024, I sure am hoping for good results.

29/11/2023

Good morning Friends and Family.....Thinks have been getting interesting since my last post in March.

The PSMA san showed cancer marks all over the body, so they put me on Xtandi pills 4 pills daily everyday.....to try to bring down the numbers, well it was working up until August when the PSA numbers started going back up. The doctor said that I have became RESISTANT to the current treatment and will need to start a more aggressive Chemo treatment.

So, the recommendation is 8 treatments of Docetaxel every three weeks starting in October, along with the Xtandi pills and steroids.
I will also be getting Zometa injections every 6 weeks.

After my first session, I had real bad pain in my arms, legs, and feet and two weeks later all my hair started falling out. I called the doctor the following monday to ask what I can take to the pain, he said Claritin has been proven to help lessen the pain.

I just finished my third treatment on Nov 28th, the pain should start in three days and last 6 days....this is not fun.

12/03/2023

Good morning friends and family.......well a lot has happened in the past few months.
On Jan 9th, I meet with my urologist for a follow-up, its been a long time since I seen him. He seen that my PSA number moved up to 1.1 and wondered WHY my Hematology doctor hasn't started me back on a new treatment plan....so he scheduled a new Bone and CT scan for me.
Feb 24, 2023 I went and had both scans done and was meeting with the Hematologist on the 27th to explain the results. Well it was not the news that Theresa and I wanted to hear.
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Bone Scan = Interval intense radiotracer uptake seen in the frontal calvarium on the left side.
Focal radiotracer uptake also seen in the right lateral skull slightly less prominent.
Focal radiotracer uptake also seen in the regions of the left and right ischium.
Impression: Focal radiotracer uptake seen in the frontal skull just to the left of the midline HIGHLY concerning for osseous metastatic disease. Radiographic or CT correlation recommended.
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CT Scan = Multiple enlarged metastatic lymph nodes in the visualized par esophageal region. Multiple right upper quadrant mesenteric metastatic lymph nodes. Multiple retroperitoneal metastatic nodes, including the bilateral common iliac chain and left external iliac chain lymph nodes.
Impression: Metastatic lymphadenopathy in the chest, abdomen and pelvis as detailed above.
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SO, from what the doctor explained in common English was that the cancer is back and has spread aggressively to my chest, throat and skull.....and he has ordered a PET CT PSMA scan to better define the cancer locations and sizes, but no date has been schedule as of today. He also took blood to test the PSA.....results......19.8
Chemo treatment here I come............ugh!!!
Thanks for listening.

12/03/2023