A long overdue letter to my friend

Hello dear friend


This letter bears good news and in fact for me it is an epiphany!

What's on in Melbourne in the music scene.

I wrote you some time ago the post being (2 days living with cancer). 18 November 2010. 


You may remember I spoke of the fact I have a tumour in the prostate gland it had a Gleason score of 9 and a PSA 45 rising rapidly. The biopsy 18/1/2009 showed a large tumor covering half the prostate. 


The conundrum; impossible to operate, radiotherapy was not an option, chemotheray does not work on prostates. Androgen blockers was the stop gap method. (female hormones).


I responded really well to this treatment and as you know in the 2 years since treatment started we have been traveling and doing lots of good stuff. The PSA score bottomed out at a nadir of 1.5 and then started to increase. This was very suspicious added to this shadows on the bones. 
The PSA score is not restricted to the prostate if the cancer spreads it will send out the same PSA no matter if it is in the bones, liver, or other close organs. The danger for men is there is no symptoms of the disease. 

Top end of Collins street we were waiting for the hospital to open 6.45am

My Brisbane Oncologist felt he needed better information to make a decision and he referred me to Professor Gillian Dushene at the Peter MacCallum Cancer Clinic East Melbourne for treatment. She took over my case and decided to do extensive scans and tests prior to taking the plunge on Iodine 125 seed implantation Brakytherapy a form of mini atomic bombs implanted to explode over 4 months. Man says I "this is serious shit". 


After 3 days of MRI and ultra sounds tests. The professor reported that they had not found evidence of any extensive disease The scans showed the prostate to be near normal and no obvious disease was seen. A recommended course of action was to stay on the anti androgen drugs. "I can handle that!"
In short I still have a tumour. It has shrunk. I am being treated with androgen blockers. 


My friend the news is manna to me. I do not know what I have done to cheat the tumour. 
Maybe the change helped! 
I eat only fresh. I do not eat red meat, Coffee is down to two a day, Green tea and good leaf teas replaced coffee. I walk beside the water every day. I swim at least 1.5 km a week. I try not to stress the small things as it is all small things. More importantly I love to travel with the wind in my hair and a pack on my back with my camera and sketch pad on trucks and trains with the locals, it all seems easy. Then there is little Lucie, Kellie-ann, Richie, and Citt powering on with their lives. How can I miss that? Pam and I are 45 married, amazing.

Coffee in the old Melbourne GPO

"Freedom's just another word for nothing left to lose"
Bobby MacGee
.

Gotcha,

Thank you, thank you, thank you, for your kind words and prayers they all worked. It is a minor miracle. I know it is not over but man it sure as hell beats the alternative.


Regards your good friend


Malcolm