Cody's Health Problems

[Tony Page]

Prostate Cancer Update: So far, so good, on the radiation therapy. My appointment time has changed at our request, due to traffic we encountered with appointments at 7:15AM, 7:30AM, 8:15AM and 8:30AM. We have to take two freeways to get to radiation and the freeway traffic at those times was pretty bad. From today, Monday July 14th, until the last day of radiation on August 7th, my appointment time is 10:15AM.

My Oncologist Dr. requests that I get a Hormone Injection. The injection slows my testosterone from aiding my cancer to growing/spreading. My 1/2 brother has gotten two of them in his stomach for his prostate cancer. However, the VA will send my prostate cancer exams (MRI, Biopsy and PET Scan) to different Oncologist that will review the exams and decide if I do indeed need this injection. If he deems it necessary, I will get it, but my wife and I will monitor any effects it will give me.

Whomever reads this, do you know any man that has gotten this injection? If yes, after getting it, how did he do? If the guy decided not to, I like to hear about that as well.

We ordered, and are now wearing, N95 masks when we go to radiation, grocery store and order food to go. Currently we are not eating in any restaurant.

My wife is being SUPER dealing with my problem and helps me out a lot, along with working her full-time job at home. She makes a GREAT nurse and wife!

Cody,
Glad your treatment is going well.
I will be starting my radiation treatment in 2 weeks.

I have been taking hormone pills Orgovyx daily since May. The Doctor choose not to give me the injection.

I will be on this pill for about 2 years. It does have side effects, like feeling tired, hot flashes, muscle aches.

I hope all goes well for you, I am not looking forward to the radiation treatment.

 

[Cody Fousnaugh]

Cody,
Glad your treatment is going well.
I will be starting my radiation treatment in 2 weeks.

I have been taking hormone pills Orgovyx daily since May. The Doctor choose not to give me the injection.

I will be on this pill for about 2 years. It does have side effects, like feeling tired, hot flashes, muscle aches.

I hope all goes well for you, I am not looking forward to the radiation treatment.

My radiation treatment/therapy isn't too bad. Like I was told by the Tech, I don't feel a thing when it's happening.

There is a limitation of time, on what I can do and when I have to stop. I get woken up and have to urinate much more at night than I'd like to. There are times when I think my body is retaining some-to-a lot of water I drink during the day or I'm just not able to completely empty my bladder at night. If it keeps up, I will speak to my Oncologist about it. IOW, I definitely need better/more sleep at night than I've been getting!

I also have to drink two 16.9 oz. of water before having my radiation done each day (except Saturday/Sunday). A full bladder, for many men, is a necessity when the radiation machine starts.

 

[Tony Page]

My radiation treatment/therapy isn't too bad. Like I was told by the Tech, I don't feel a thing when it's happening.

There is a limitation of time, on what I can do and when I have to stop. I get woken up and have to urinate much more at night than I'd like to. There are times when I think my body is retaining some-to-a lot of water I drink during the day or I'm just not able to completely empty my bladder at night. If it keeps up, I will speak to my Oncologist about it. IOW, I definitely need better/more sleep at night than I've been getting!

I also have to drink two 16.9 oz. of water before having my radiation done each day (except Saturday/Sunday). A full bladder, for many men, is a necessity when the radiation machine starts.

How many doses of radiation are you going to get?
I'm getting 26 doses.

I had a B12 shot today. I get it once a month, to give me an energy boost. The hormone pill make me tired.

I will be getting instructions soon on how to prep for the radiation.

 

[Cody Fousnaugh]

How many doses of radiation are you going to get?
I'm getting 26 doses.

I had a B12 shot today. I get it once a month, to give me an energy boost. The hormone pill make me tired.

I will be getting instructions soon on how to prep for the radiation.

I'm getting 28 radiation treatments. IOW, 5 weeks/3 days.

As for B12, I take two 500 mcg (supplement) every morning after I first get up. Both give me a boost, but that "boost" only lasts for a couple of hours, at the most. I'm going to check with my VA doctor about getting a B12 shot.

However, every-other day I take a 50mg Tramadol (opioid/classified as a narcotic) for my shoulders that I had rotator cuff surgery on some years ago. Osteoarthritis set into the left shoulder fairly bad, that's why I take the Tramadol. PT didn't work. When I take the Tramadol, I get a boost from that pretty much the entire day. But, while on radiation therapy, the Tramadol "boost" doesn't last the entire day.

Just remember, Tony, if the radiation machine breaks down/stops working or there is a holiday during the week, you will have to make up those days of radiation. That's what has happened to me. Wife and I have had to go home twice, due to the machine not working and there was a holiday that the radiation place was closed.

One other thing, the radiation treatment/therapy, will make you tired/fatigued also. You can do things, but will get tired faster/easier and have to take a break.

 

[Tony Page]

I'm getting 28 radiation treatments. IOW, 5 weeks/3 days.

As for B12, I take two 500 mcg (supplement) every morning after I first get up. Both give me a boost, but that "boost" only lasts for a couple of hours, at the most. I'm going to check with my VA doctor about getting a B12 shot.

However, every-other day I take a 50mg Tramadol (opioid/classified as a narcotic) for my shoulders that I had rotator cuff surgery on some years ago. Osteoarthritis set into the left shoulder fairly bad, that's why I take the Tramadol. PT didn't work. When I take the Tramadol, I get a boost from that pretty much the entire day. But, while on radiation therapy, the Tramadol "boost" doesn't last the entire day.

Just remember, Tony, if the radiation machine breaks down/stops working or there is a holiday during the week, you will have to make up those days of radiation. That's what has happened to me. Wife and I have had to go home twice, due to the machine not working and there was a holiday that the radiation place was closed.

One other thing, the radiation treatment/therapy, will make you tired/fatigued also. You can do things, but will get tired faster/easier and have to take a break.

Cody,
Thanks for the info.
My radiation is 5 days a week with weekends off. It will start on a Friday for the extra day. 26 total treatments.

.

 

[Don Alaska]

Best of luck to both of you!

 

[Cody Fousnaugh]

Update:

First, the my VA Medical is paying for all of my treatment, but it's shocking how little the VA pays. We get a "This Is Not A Bill" for all procedures I'm having done and the VA is paying a very small amount for all procedures. IOW, not even half of what each place is billing.

Anyway, a week from this coming Monday (August 11th) will be my last day of radiation therapy. Earlier this week I was told by a Radiation Therapist that the last two weeks of radiation are the worst, when it comes to nightly urination/bladder spasms and diarrhea. She wasn't kidding! My Oncologist doctor even prescribed me a medicine for bladder spasms that happen to me all night. After first taking one Oxybutynin Chloride 5mg and then a half of one six hours later, I had to stop taking the medication. The first tablet gave me a pretty serious pain in the right side of my stomach, so I thought "maybe the 5mg is too strong for me" and so I cut one in half and took it. The pain didn't go away! So, I had to stop taking any more and will let the Oncologist doctor know about that next Monday.

This entire week I've been plagued with urination/bladder spasms and diarrhea, especially at night after going to bed. Up every hour for urination, with bladder spasms and sometimes diarrhea. Sometimes trying to urinate was very painful, due to the bladder spasms, whether I could stand up or had to sit down. Actually, I read online just how terribly painful effects of radiation can be/is during those two weeks. Wife and I can only HOPE that the spasms slow down after my radiation therapy is over. After the radiation, my Oncologist doctor will have me get a PSA lab to see what the number is.

Sometime in the next week or so, I have to get numerous blood labs done, so I can get a hormone injection. Don't know how that will treat my body either. If the injection treats my body ok, I will get one every three months, perhaps up to a year and a half.

That's it for now. If you have any questions about what I'm going thru, please do ask.

 

[Yvonne Smith]

That seems like a terrible thing for you to be going through, @Cody Fousnaugh , and I am thankful that you are finally almost done with it. Adding a prayer for you and hoping that you will start feeling better once all of the radiation therapy is over with.

 

[Cody Fousnaugh]

That seems like a terrible thing for you to be going through, @Cody Fousnaugh , and I am thankful that you are finally almost done with it. Adding a prayer for you and hoping that you will start feeling better once all of the radiation therapy is over with.

Nancy and I thank you so much. Currently it's pretty tough/painful for me during the night. I wasn't told just how painful the last couple of weeks would be, trying to deal with the bladder spasms and diarrhea, but then again, I didn't research "prostate cancer radiation effects" either. The pain, from the spasms at night, is one of the hardest things I've ever had to cope with. I don't think I've ever felt this much pain before, however, as soon as the spasms subside, I'm fine.

I don't like sleeping/napping that much during the day, but haven't got a choice with the lack of sleep I get during the night.

 

[Don Alaska]

Nancy and I thank you so much. Currently it's pretty tough/painful for me during the night. I wasn't told just how painful the last couple of weeks would be, trying to deal with the bladder spasms and diarrhea, but then again, I didn't research "prostate cancer radiation effects" either. The pain, from the spasms at night, is one of the hardest things I've ever had to cope with. I don't think I've ever felt this much pain before, however, as soon as the spasms subside, I'm fine.

I don't like sleeping/napping that much during the day, but haven't got a choice with the lack of sleep I get during the night.

@Cody Fousnaugh try using a urinal. It may allow you to relax and empty your bladder more completely. Give it a try. You can get them on Amazon if you don't already have one around. It doesn't help with diarrhea though.

 

[Cody Fousnaugh]

@Cody Fousnaugh try using a urinal. It may allow you to relax and empty your bladder more completely. Give it a try. You can get them on Amazon if you don't already have one around. It doesn't help with diarrhea though.

I already have one and it doesn't work laying down or sitting. I have to be standing/leaning against the wall in the back of the toilet to get my urination started. Before I started the radiation, I could use the urinal while laying in bed, but not currently while doing radiation.

 

[Don Alaska]

I already have one and it doesn't work laying down or sitting. I have to be standing/leaning against the wall in the back of the toilet to get my urination started. Before I started the radiation, I could use the urinal while laying in bed, but not currently while doing radiation.

Yeah, it is probably hard not standing. I thought you could still stand.

 

[Cody Fousnaugh]

Yeah, it is probably hard not standing. I thought you could still stand.

I can stand! I just can't be laying down or standing up and urinate in a urinal right now. However, I can stand up at the toilet and urinate, but I have to wait until the bladder spasms stop and I have to be sitting on the toilet to do that.

I had the receptionist at radiation give my Oncologist doctor a message for me to "please order me a prescription of Tamsulosin aka Flowmax for the bladder spasms" that is being caused by the high amount of radiation I'm getting.

 

[Don Alaska]

I can stand! I just can't be laying down or standing up and urinate in a urinal right now. However, I can stand up at the toilet and urinate, but I have to wait until the bladder spasms stop and I have to be sitting on the toilet to do that.

I had the receptionist at radiation give my Oncologist doctor a message for me to "please order me a prescription of Tamsulosin aka Flowmax for the bladder spasms" that is being caused by the high amount of radiation I'm getting.

Tamsulosin relieves some spams, but there are newer drugs out there for that. They may not be on the VA formulary though as they are quite expensive. Sometimes private doctors give enough samples for a week and that is long enough to quiet things down. I suspect you did not urinate in bed before you started treatment, so standing should be the way to go. I am surprised you weren't already on Flomax. It quiets the alpha receptors if I am not mistaken and relaxes the sphincter muscles in the prostate, thus making it easier to drain your bladder.

 

[Cody Fousnaugh]

Tamsulosin relieves some spams, but there are newer drugs out there for that. They may not be on the VA formulary though as they are quite expensive. Sometimes private doctors give enough samples for a week and that is long enough to quiet things down. I suspect you did not urinate in bed before you started treatment, so standing should be the way to go. I am surprised you weren't already on Flomax. It quiets the alpha receptors if I am not mistaken and relaxes the sphincter muscles in the prostate, thus making it easier to drain your bladder.

Well, Don, "some" is better than what's happening currently, when it comes to my bladder spasms. Darn near every hour, on the hour, I get woke up with a bladder spasm. I have to sit down on the toilet and try and "grin and bare" the pain of letting the spasm stop. I then go back to bed and a few minutes later, I have to get back up again to actually urinate. Then, on top of that, my bowel system is "out of wack" as well. Both caused by the intense radiation I'm getting in the abdomen area.

The oncologist doctor did get me a prescription medication to slow up my urination times at night, but, after taking it for less than a day, I had to stop, due to pain in my stomach. IOW, not all prescription medications work on all patients and the Oxybutynin Chloride sure didn't for me.

Actually, my brother told me he is on Tamsulosin aka Flomax for his nightly urinary problems. So, I asked my oncologist to get me a prescription from the VA Pharmacy and he said he would. My brother also told me that, once I finish my radiation therapy, I'll begin to feel/do better. I hope that is true, because I sure don't want to feel any worse. Will just have to wait and see. I read that sometimes it can take a few weeks to get over prostate cancer radiation therapy.

 

[Don Alaska]

Well, Don, "some" is better than what's happening currently, when it comes to my bladder spasms. Darn near every hour, on the hour, I get woke up with a bladder spasm. I have to sit down on the toilet and try and "grin and bare" the pain of letting the spasm stop. I then go back to bed and a few minutes later, I have to get back up again to actually urinate. Then, on top of that, my bowel system is "out of wack" as well. Both caused by the intense radiation I'm getting in the abdomen area.

The oncologist doctor did get me a prescription medication to slow up my urination times at night, but, after taking it for less than a day, I had to stop, due to pain in my stomach. IOW, not all prescription medications work on all patients and the Oxybutynin Chloride sure didn't for me.

Actually, my brother told me he is on Tamsulosin aka Flomax for his nightly urinary problems. So, I asked my oncologist to get me a prescription from the VA Pharmacy and he said he would. My brother also told me that, once I finish my radiation therapy, I'll begin to feel/do better. I hope that is true, because I sure don't want to feel any worse. Will just have to wait and see. I read that sometimes it can take a few weeks to get over prostate cancer radiation therapy.

I certainly wish you well @Cody Fousnaugh. If 0.4 mg of Tamsulosin doesn't help, ask your doctor about taking 0.8 mgs (2 tablets). Sometimes that works better.

 

[Cody Fousnaugh]

I certainly wish you well @Cody Fousnaugh. If 0.4 mg of Tamsulosin doesn't help, ask your doctor about taking 0.8 mgs (2 tablets). Sometimes that works better.

That's what my brother takes (2 tablets).

 

[Cody Fousnaugh]

Today was my last day of radiation..............THANK GOD!! I got to ring the "Finished" bell and Nancy (my wife) took a video of that and a Tech/Therapist took a couple of pictures of Nancy and I by the bell. I got a Certificate of Completion and have a follow-up appointment on Sept. 12.

Next week I get the Hormone Injection.

 

[Don Alaska]

Today was my last day of radiation..............THANK GOD!! I got to ring the "Finished" bell and Nancy (my wife) took a video of that and a Tech/Therapist took a couple of pictures of Nancy and I by the bell. I got a Certificate of Completion and have a follow-up appointment on Sept. 12.

Next week I get the Hormone Injection.

Congrats @Cody Fousnaugh. I hope the follow up is good news.

 

[Cody Fousnaugh]

Another Update: BTW, this is somewhat long.........just to warn everyone.

I remember the radiation tech/therapist telling me that the last two weeks of radiation were the worst on the body. However, I remember the Receptionist and my oncology doctor telling me and my wife that the first few weeks after radiation is complete, is the worst. It's now been a week since I completed my radiation therapy and we believe all three! The last two weeks of radiation was, pretty much, tougher than the first couple of weeks and this last week, post-radiation therapy, has been fairly tough on my body as well.

I was having a considerable pain coming from bladder spasms, until the pain subsided and I was able to urinate (finally).

I got the prescription Tamsulosin aka Flomax in the mail at the end of last week. Weird, but there was no, and I repeat "NO" instructions on the bottle about how/when to take it. I had to research that myself. It is "highly recommended" that the Tamsulosin capsule be taken 30 minutes after eating breakfast, but only once a day. If a 0.4mg capsule doesn't seem to work, two of them can be taken, but ONLY after discussing with the oncology doctor first. However, I was still getting a little bladder spasm pain, prior to urinating, the second night after taking one 0.4mg capsule, so I decided to take two (0.4mg) yesterday, which equaled 0.8mg. Without consulting with my oncology doctor first, I definitely shouldn't have! Part of yesterday I had some blurred vision and a pretty hard time walking around. Of course, then, after taking two, I read that there can still be some bladder spasm pain prior to urinating when only taking one capsule (0.4mg.). Too late by then.

My brother takes two Tamsulosin for his bladder spasms and to make him urinate more, but his body is definitely built different than mine. At least he told me he takes two.

I'm ok today, but am not taking my usual one Tamsulosin this morning. I read not to, so I didn't. I'm sticking with one, until we get more information from a doctor. I'll take my "one" tomorrow morning, after I eat some breakfast.

Tomorrow morning my wife takes me to get my Hormone Injection. At least I think I'll get it, if they give it to me.