Just thought I'd stop in and say I'm still here, no news on the cancer front. My PSA is still undetectable (as of Spring 2012) and I'll probably have it the next time I have blood drawn for cholesterol screening. My overall health is excellent. I'm bicycling a lot, doing strength training (dumbbell workouts, pull-ups, push-ups), and keeping my weight at a healthy BMI. I'm not alone in being free of any signs of prostate cancer after salvage radiation. Visit a major cancer discussion forum and you'll find plenty of men just like me. It's now been over 5 years since my radiation.

Walsh has a new edition of his book! If you're newly diagnosed, or going through biopsy, or just want to understand your plumbing, check this out:
 

I recently signed up with 23andMe, a company that can tell you, based upon a saliva sample, a remarkable amount of information about your health risks, traits, drug responses, carrier status and ancestry. The second highest health risk for me is (was) prostate cancer, at 51.1%, or nearly triple the average risk. Out of 12 markers for prostate cancer risk, I had 10 indicating higher than normal risk. It's a fascinating service. They nailed my prostate cancer risk, which makes me pay attention to the others identified, like heart disease, thromboembolism, and arthritis.

as to the title...

I can't say I'm under 50 any longer.
In celebration of my half-century mark, I rode 65.3 miles in the American Diabetes Association Tour de Cure.  It went well.  I feel great!  Still fine on the cancer front, still doing fine with weight control, blood pressure, and cholesterol.

I'm off to find an early bird dinner special!

so long, farewell, auf wiedersehen, adieu..

My radiation oncologist told me that since my PSA has been less than 0.1, and my DREs have been normal now for five years, he is releasing me from his care.  So I'll just have my PSA checked along with my other lab work (cholesterol, CBC) every six months, by my primary care doctor.
He's a great guy, and I hope I never see him again (at least in the office!)

Second Birthday

Five years ago today I was recalled to life, when I started the first of 38 radiation treatments, in an effort to rescue me after a prostatectomy failed to eradicate my cancer.
It worked!
In spite of a rapidly doubling PSA and short time between surgery and biochemical recurrence, it worked.  I sit here now, half a decade later, with a PSA of less than 0.1.

Tomorrow (I was a little slow) you can download the Kindle version of my story for free.