70 beats 60

"Improved outcomes with higher doses for salvage radiotherapy after prostatectomy." King, CR, and MT Spiotto. International Journal of Radiation, Biology, and Physics. 1 May 2008, 71(1):23-7. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18207668

"PURPOSE: To evaluate relapse-free survival with higher doses for patients receiving salvage radiotherapy (RT) after radical prostatectomy (RP). PATIENTS AND METHODS: A total of 122 patients with pathologically negative lymph nodes received salvage RT after RP from 1984 to 2004...CONCLUSIONS: A clinically significant dose response from 60 Gy to 70 Gy was observed in the setting of salvage RT after prostatectomy. A dose of 70 Gy to the prostate bed is recommended to achieve optimal disease-free survival."

Less than 0.1 again

I had blood drawn last week, and just got the news that my PSA was again less than 0.1. Time to celebrate!

Nomogram posted...but with problems

The Memorial Sloan Kettering site http://www.nomograms. org finally posted the salvage radiation treatment nomogram, but it appears to be full of errors. To begin with, the results are listed as progression free after surgery, not SRT. Even if you assume a simple mistake in labeling the results, the nomogram is still wildly different from that published in the original paper format. Hopefully this will get fixed soon. I've sent emails to both MSK and Dr. Stephenson about this.

blood drawn

Well, it's been 13 months since I finished salvage radiation. Had blood drawn today--I'll see the doc on May 7.

Relay for Life

Please support my team in Relay for Life (Glendale, AZ). This raises money for cancer education and research. You can donate securely online by going to the page for Glendale's Relay at:
http://relay.acsevents.org/site/TR/RelayForLife/RelayForLifeGreatWestDivision?fr_id=5677&pg=entry

and make a donation to my team--Patti's Pacers. Note that there are two Patti's Pacers--I'm in the first one (not #2) but it doesn't really matter.

Thanks!

Rapid PSA Rise Calls for Radiation

"Feb. 12, 2008 -- For the first time, researchers have shown that radiation can increase the odds of survival for men whose PSA levels rapidly rise after surgery for prostate cancer...[t]he greatest benefits of so-called salvage radiotherapy were observed in men with rapidly rising PSA levels, says researcher Bruce Trock, MD, associate professor of urology, epidemiology, oncology, and environmental health sciences at Johns Hopkins University."
Story on WebMD

Sports editor journals his salvage radiation

Welcome to radiation.

"Ken Burger, executive sports editor of The Post and Courier[Charleston], was diagnosed with prostate cancer on Feb. 2, 2007, and documented his journey in a series of columns last year. Now, in a new series of columns beginning today, he'll update readers about the latest steps in his treatment..."