My Prostate Cancer status: 16 April, 1997 Geoff Fernald


I finally at the urging of my brother and dad got my PSA test this January 1997. I've been having the usual finger check every year since I was 47, 5 years.

PSA was 8.2 and finger check indicated a slight asymmetry.

Second PSA two weeks later was 5.8 which was lower due to 48hrs. of no sex intervening (one of the articles (non professional though implied professional source).


Biopsy was taken and showed as of 3/25/97 that three left samples are 75% cancerous (adenocarcinoma), right three samples are not. I'd guess at a T2a or T2b stage.

Gleeson numbers were: 3 + 3 or 6.

At this point my most famous quote was "I'd rather die than not have sex any more." This attitude changed quite a bit as treatment progressed as you will see.

I got a Bone and CAT scan last week to check for spreading. CAT scan was clear. Bone scan was normal. 12 April, 1997. These scan results prove no gross cancer spread (metastatis) to bones or lymph.

Ultrasounds on my new machine at work (not a released transducer yet) do not show a cancer clearly but do show asymmetry and some slight displacement. Periphery walls of prostate do not seem perforated on left.

Second set of Ultrasounds after biopsy. We found an area from middle to fairly far left (right in ultrasounds) which is close to periphery and may be the cancer.

My attitude is generally good, but I dislike the prospect of losing my lovemaking capabilities the most. Jane does not seem as worried about that, but is very concerned about my sticking with her for our full spans.

My macabre jokes are beginning to wear a little thin, everyone at work knows more than they wanted to, life is still being good to me.

My family and friends are all wonderful as I knew they would be.

The kids are taking it well so far.

Since the cancer is confined to the prostate there is a great chance that I'll live a good 20 and more years. The two main fixes are removal via surgury and radioactive seed implantation.


I'll update this as info and feelings unfold.

geoff