Thursday, April 20, 2017

Back on Track with Hormone Lite/Xtandi

Over the past year my PSA has risen slowly but surely from .11 to .76. As any reader of this journal knows, I searched long and hard for a solution with a high likelihood of success with minimal side effects. Rightly or wrongly throughout my ordeal I have placed a premium on preserving quality of life. To my way of thinking a cure would be most welcome, but the risk involved has inevitably tended to over shadow the desired outcome. Its been a crapshoot from the outset and that has never changed.
At this juncture I am pleased to report that after being on xtandi for only three weeks my PSA has dropped back to .11.The predominant side effect of fatigue has materialized as expected. In my case this means after two hours of tennis doubles three days a week I tend to fall asleep in the evenings while attempting to catch up on my reading or watching a sporting event on TV. Short story abbreviated to the max, I am satisfied with my results thus far. A brief but pertinent Patient Portal exchange with Dr. Myers appears below:
Pt.
 Assuming xtandi proves effective as indicated by my monthly blood draws, how long do you expect this medication to control the progression of my PCa?
Dr. Myers
 IT MIGHT WORK FOR YEARS OR AS SHORT AS 6 MONTHS
 
Stay tuned