Lessons from a survivor for prostate cancer
Ric Siler fought twice prostate cancer, and twice with doctors who went for treatment. Today, five years out, he is without cancer and shares the message of hope with other men and their families.
Think of your own business and live happily living your life, As most of us are when there is a diagnosis of cancer. What are you doing now?
This happened to Ric Siler, an actor and writer, who was diagnosed with prostate cancer at the age of 64. It’s 71 now and without cancer. How did he get from here? Ric shares quite important lessons – things that helped him go through cancer treatment on the other side where cancer is one Smaller image in the rear view mirror.
Attitude is of great importance
First and foremost, Ric did what many doctors believe is the most important thing you can do in a medical crisis: He was optimistic. Was grateful – For his wife and daughter, for a random conversation that resulted in finding the right surgeon, for the kindness and support of friends and the many medical professionals who will soon meet and especially about the beauty of nature and art, which he began to observe all the time. He too kept the sense of humor.
Why does the attitude matter? No one fully understands the connection of mind-body, but the University of Texas-South Scientist Suzanne Conzen, MD, and others have shown that Stress includes the same streets as cancer. The stress hormone is cortisol and Almost every cell in our body has a cortisol receptor (This is called glucocorticoid receptor or gr). Conzen has shown that reducing stress reduces cortisol and this can slow down the development of cancer. (This is not a substitute for treatment, but I firmly believe that it is helping and there are other lifestyle changes that can help slow down cancer and make treatment more effective, including your diet change, reducing your calorie intake, exercise, weight loss and weight loss.
From the blue: When RIC’s prostate cancer was diagnosed in June 2018, “I had no symptoms,” Ric says, “no idea that nothing was wrong, I had gone to my doctor for something completely irrelevant and said:” We haven’t got your blood for a while. In one and a half years, RIC’s PSA had doubled, from 4 to 8.
He went to a urologist near his home in the Rockland County of New York and doesn’t care much. “He did nothing to instill trust. I didn’t feel right about him. There were four doctors in practice, so I chose the one who was available. Funny how this works. ” (Note: In my experience, this may be a red flag. The doctor who can see you right away may not be the one you want to see. Biopsy returned: Cancer was present at 12 tissue samples and Gleason score was originally considered to be 8. Later it turned out to be 9.
A second opinion: Ask around!
Ric’s daughter, Laurette, suggested that he Receive a second opinion. “I hadn’t even thought about that,” Ric says. But he didn’t know what to do or how to find a good urologist. “The next morning, I was working on y”, and without realizing it, Web. This is good for every patient to do. It is very important to find a doctor in which clinical abilities are confident. And networking – to find the right doctor or talk to men who are or have been on the same boat – can make a huge difference in how you approach the treatment of your cancer and look forward to your life after cancer.
Ric talked to his friends, Peter and Steve. Steve said he knew the men who had survived prostate cancer and were offered to ask about a good surgeon. And “Peter said,” talk to Jerry. “Jerry is the founder and chief executive of Peter and I work and is survivor for prostate cancer.” Ric spoke with Jerry the same day. “I saw Jerry in his office with the door open. I asked if he had a minute,” and explained the situation. “Once he came out in a flood. I hadn’t planned to be emotional” in fact, “a kind of Stoic Resolve is usually my default function.” But Jerry understood and said he had felt the same way as his own diagnosis of prostate cancer. ‘He said, “When I heard the news, I thought my life was over.” And then he said, “a year from now, we will laugh about it.” It was great to talk to someone who was in my shoes and get out on the other side. Offered any help, whenever I had to talk, and said, “You will do the same for people one day.” Yes, I’ll do it. ” (And do it.)
The next day, Steve wrote Ric by referring to one of his friends to urologist Ash Tewari, MD, to Mount Sinai. “Time for a second opinion! I read Don Quixote At that time, and I saw this excerpt on the same day, a Latin phrase translated into, “After darkness, I hope for light.”
While waiting to see Tewari, Ric, who had begun holding a written record for his experience, noted how he felt: “Keeping it as normal and real as possible.
The date for the business was on September 17th. “I asked about the hospital stay and said she did three surgeries yesterday and everyone was going home today!” Ric remembers. Reported The big trip to Italyscheduled for November, that he and his wife, Bette, had planned for years. Tewari said he should be fine, and that turned out to be happening.
A game with an action RIC wrote, “How do you say the protector in Italian?” It covers what happened later in some details: Magnetic resonance imaging, which had radio music, including the advertising of Dunkin’s donuts between the soothing pieces of classical music. The hospital, where he was happy to have a private room (“could spoil a man!”); Walking the hospital floors after surgery, with its catheter, “pee bag” and abdominal sewer. Significant milestones, from the transition of gas after surgery to remove the catheter, buy the pillows, take biofeedback and learn to do Kegel exercises while dealing with temporary urinary incontinence. And it’s funny! And enthusiastic and full of gratitude.
Not so fast: But wait – there are more. RIC’s PSA began to rise again after surgery. “I had thought I was out of the forest … not so fast, kimosabe! I had thought that PSA was raised after surgery meant this perhaps There is cancer … nope. It means yes, there is cancer and we have to deal with it. ”
Christmas of 2018 was a time for reflection. Ric made a note: “I have lived my life for the most part I feel a bit indestructible, so it is frustrating to feel, good, destructive. One thing I know for sure as I sit here quietly with the dog and a beautiful tree with my gifts,
Under the care of medical oncologist William Oh, MD, and with the aim of ‘total elimination of cancer’RIC had a short course of hormonal therapy and eight weeks of external beam radiotherapy, which had its own challenges. When the eight weeks were over, Ric was surprised to find that he had mixed emotions. He wrote: “While treatments have happened, there has been a rock -solid sense, we work together to eliminate this cancer, I do my role to come with a complete bladder, without gas and in time and I have a very good time. Radiotherapy to say, “I did!”
Ric is now without cancer and continues with the rest of his life. “I was so lucky,” he says. “If I hadn’t mentioned my cancer in these guys in y, I wouldn’t have met Dr. Tewari” and through Tewari, Dr. Oh. “Everything fell together for me. If I hadn’t taken this blood test, I would sit here and a half years later no one wiser and the cancer would continue to grow.
“Silence is not golden when it comes to prostate.”
“The whole subject of my game, apart from personal thoughts to live to see art in Italy and what it meant for me and be here after this cancer brush, is that early detection is really important. A warning story to do what you need to do. Silence is not golden when it comes to the prostate. ”
Ric was not silent. A man who talked about the experience said, “Wow, my wife wanted to make an appointment with the doctor. I didn’t go. I’ll do it now. “He hopes that such meetings will be like” wavy in the pool “, men who help each other are healthy. But they were a walk.”
A few years ago, Ric made a reading of his game in New York. Then a woman came to him. Her husband is survivor for prostate cancer. “He took me aside and said,” This is very important because men do not talk about these things except whispers. ”
Ric continues to act and write, contribute to prostate cancer awareness and encourage men to examine and take action if a treatment is required – so that they can move from cancer and move on with life. Recently, he said: “It’s great to be 71 and feel that the best has not come yet!”
In addition to the bookI have written about prostate cancer on the prostate cancer website, Pcf.org. I firmly believe that knowledge is power. Save your life can start with the transition to the doctor and know the right questions you need to ask. I hope all men put prostate cancer on their radar. Take a basic PSA blood test in the early 1940s and if you are African descent or if the cancer and/or prostate cancer runs to your family, you should regularly examine for the disease. Many doctors do not do this, so it is up to you to ask for it.
© Janet Farrar Worthington
