Get ‘er done (part II)

Dad’s scans came back fine which means the cancer was contained in his prostate.  Great news!  He has decided on the robotic surgery which will be April 1^st.  I went ahead and told the kids since Dad’s prognosis was good.  The phrase he has used the last couple of times I have talked to him was, “Get ‘er done.”  The four girls bought him a tee shirt with that saying on it to give to him along with some other goodies before his surgery.

I drove to the hospital in Atlanta where Dad was having his surgery.  Claudia, Jennifer, and Grady also came.  While sitting in the waiting room for Dad to get out of surgery, there were a lot of other people waiting for their loved one to get out of surgery also.  It was a big room, and it seemed very impersonal to sit and watch doctors come and go informing those waiting for their loved one’s prognosis.  A particular group of people were very loud and frequently laughed.  One lady was extremely loud.  I thought the lady should have had a little more respect for the other people in the waiting room.  Yes, her loved may have had a simple non-life-threatening surgery, but what about those around her?  Someone else’s surgery could have been life-threatening.

U  Are you being considerate of others as you are sitting in a waiting room?  U

Dad’s surgery went great.  The doctor took out Dad’s whole prostate.  He will have to come back for a follow-up visit and get his blood checked again.  When they check his blood, they use a PSA (prostate specific antigen) test.  The PSA test is the most effective test for early detection of prostate cancer.  The test measures how much PSA is in his bloodstream.  Dad’s PSA number came back .007, hardly detected at all.  He will have to continue to get his blood checked to make sure the cancer does not come back.  Dad said, “I didn’t get a get out of jail free card.”  I laughed!!

Get ‘er done (part I)

Dad sent the four girls an email tonight telling us he got his results back from the biopsy of his prostate.  One out of the nine samples came back positive.  On a scale of one to ten, his was a seven.  “For those not familiar with diagnostic methods, when a man is diagnosed with prostate cancer a needle biopsy procedure can often indicate how fast-growing the cancer is.  This rate of growth is given a number between 1 and 10 and is referred to as the ‘Gleason’ score or the ‘Gleason scale rating.’  1 on the Gleason scale indicates the slowest-growing type of prostate cancer and 10 indicates the fastest-growing type.  Typical prostate cancer Gleason ratings might be 3, 4, or 5.  Ratings of 7, 8, 9 or 10 are considered aggressive.”  He said he was getting a bone scan and CT scan Friday.  He mentioned it looks like surgery or some sort of radiation treatment.

First of all, I was trying to process the news and what exactly it meant before I talked to Dad.  I researched “prostate” and immediately it hit me, this was cancer.  Then my next thought was “survival rate.”  After I thought I had enough information, I called Dad.

I debated on whether or not to email him back or call.  I knew Dad did not like to open up and talk, but I thought emailing him back was so impersonal, especially concerning the topic.  I prayed before I called him because I did not want to say the wrong thing.  One of the biggest things I think I have learned though everything I have been though is the impact of words.  Words can encourage or destroy someone in a flash.  Most of the time, hurt feelings occur when the words are not thought about before they are spoken.  They are just blurted out without much preparation or thought of how the person receiving those words will hear them.  But, once said they cannot be taken back.  

I asked Dad a few questions.  He said he was going to deal with what he was dealt, and he would know the results on Monday.  As we talked, I did not want for there to be silence on my part.  I did not really know what to say.  Should I say, “I am praying for you?”  To me, that would show the need for urgency to pray at this particular point.

A billion things have run through my head tonight.  I thought about my kids, and how I don’t want them to know yet.  It is way too early, and there is still so much to find out.  I thought about Claudia.  I thought about me.  These last six years have been so extremely hard on me, and it is not going to get any better.  I take comfort in knowing God is still in control, and I have so much more to learn.

       U  Have you taken the time to pray before you speak about sensitive issues? U

U  Should you call or reply back to an email concerning someone’s prognosis? U

 

“What Men Need To Know about Prostate Cancer and PSA.” www.outsmartyourcancer.com/pdf/ProstateArticleForSite.pdf