| My older brother was diagnosed with prostate cancer and had his prostate surgically removed. That was 8 years ago and he remains fit and well and cancer free.
Following his news I started to have regular PSA blood tests which did show a steady rise. Eventually the consultant suggestive biopsies to check out the prostate. At the second go they found a low level of the less aggressive form of prostate cancer, which was still enclosed in the capsule. That was good luck!
After one abortive robotic prostatectomy (the Da Vinci machine failed after a couple of hours) the consultant suggested I continue to monitor my PSA levels on a regular basis; a doubling of the level over a 6 month period would signal a dangerous increase in the cancers activity and thus further intervention.
In an attempt to slow down the cancer I was advised to add to my diet some of the following - cooked tomatoes (for the lycopene), green china tea, selenium and zinc, green vegetables galore! No problem here in Thailand. The result is that over a couple of years the PSA level has slowly gone down from around 8 to just over 5. So is it the dietary change that has done the trick? Not sure - but I am quite happy to carry on eating like this and regularly checking the PSA level (just 300 THB at the local hospital). And at least I have avoided the dreaded surgical complications of potential incontinence and impotence! |