|
|
#31
03-01-2021, 11:09 AM
|
||||
|
||||
Quote:
 I am commenting here as a fellow guitarist who has had experience as a patient and provider....AND consult your own health professional for advice...I am retired and take no responsibility for anything that may result by my comments...(it's sad I even have to proclaim this, but this is how our society,internet,social media functions....) GG Last edited by guitargabor; 03-01-2021 at 01:34 PM. 
|
|
#32
03-01-2021, 12:35 PM
|
||||
|
||||
|
I have a buddy in his mid 50s with Prostate cancer which has spread to his lymph nodes, so yeah, it can definitely be serious. The outlook for him isn't great. Scary times for his family and friends.
|
|
#33
03-01-2021, 01:13 PM
|
|||
|
|||
|
Up until a year ago, I had been on Flomax and Proscar. The increase in my Flomax dosage helped. Varying the dosage time also helped: one capsule during the day and the second dose before bed time. Both were done with my urologist's consent.
For many years, my urologist had been advocating that he do TURP surgery to open up my urethra. He said the risk were low and the post surgery effects were minimal. He has had great success doing the surgery. So I finally decided to have it done last year. I have no regrets. I no longer have an urgency problem, and no longer get up during the night to pee.
|
|
#34
03-01-2021, 01:47 PM
|
||||
|
||||
|
I also have had the TURP surgery, surprisingly in my late 40’s. I had BPH with a lobe of the prostate blocking the urethra. I didn’t really have a choice, I was 100% blocked with a catheter allowing me to do my thing.
When the anesthesiologist came in to ask questions before surgery, he thought he had the wrong room as most of his patients are much, much older. Just lucky I guess... That whole experience is what moved me to a plant-based diet, which had been one of the most positive changes in my life. Silver linings and all that...
|
|
#35
03-02-2021, 08:11 AM
|
|||
|
|||
|
Years ago when I went for cataract surgery, the doctor asked me if I ever had taken Flowmax. I said yes, I used it once when I had a kidney stone. He informed me that even after one use it causes the iris to soften permanently. There's no affect to vision, but the surgeon needed to be aware when performing the cataract procedure.
|
|
#36
03-02-2021, 08:37 AM
|
|||
|
|||
|
I was on the generic form of Flomax for awhile and found it helpful. When I was unable to get the scrip renewed, I tried saw palmetto and get about the same results in terms of maintaining a good flow. My new GP was fine with it and said many patients get good results with it. It does not, however, help with the 3 AM potty call. I think I'd have to stop with my one glass of dark red wine (for heart health) just before bed to get any relief there. At 65, I find myself awake around that hour whether I need to go or not.
|
|
#37
03-02-2021, 09:57 AM
|
||||
|
||||
|
All this sounds just too familiar!! Been on both Flomax and Avodart for lots of years (I use the generic of these meds). At 74, both have worked well for me and I can go all night, or one 3 a.m.
Have not needed to go the higher dosage on Flomax, but it's an option as others have indicated. The Avodart needs months to begin the shrinking of the prostate so it's not immediate. It also can work against getting prostate cancer, BUT, if you do contract the disease, it's likely to be a more aggressive form of cancer as it's made its way through any Avodart protection. (words from my urologist). Outside of not drinking before bed time, I also believe that keeping hydrated and active can help immensely with the prostate. Good luck out there!!!
__________________
1993 Bourgeois JOM 1967 Martin D12-20 2007 Vines Artisan 2014 Doerr Legacy 2013 Bamburg FSC- 2002 Flammang 000 12 fret 2000 McCollum Grand Auditorium ______________________________ Soundcloud Spotify
|
|
#38
03-03-2021, 12:35 PM
|
|||
|
|||
|
I too have/had BPH. There is a relatively new non-invasive procedure (no cutting) called Urolift that I had done that has been a game changer for me. I too suffered from “weak stream” for years until I decided to do something about it as it got worse and worse and began to affect my lifestyle. I did try Flomax briefly with not much result. I highly recommend the Urolift procedure. They’ve been doing the procedure now for 7-8 years and my Urologist said the success rate is about 87%. Surgery gets your success rate up into 95% range. I wouldn’t call the Urolift procedure a “breeze”, but a much better option than surgery. (TMI) I urinate like a 20 year old now! Seriously. Read about it.
https://www.urolift.com/
|
|
#40
03-03-2021, 06:59 PM
|
||||
|
||||
|
I'm glad that some of you have had excellent results with the "urolift" procedure.
It's VERY new in the overall scheme of things. Many of these new exiting "miraculous" procedures frequently do not stand the test of time. There is a huge financial incentive for docs to perform procedures in their offices and clinics. I looked at the studies on this ALL of which were paid for by the manufacturer of the product.Objectively they produce only a marginal benefit: "there were only marginal improvements seen in the objective parameters measured." https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5117169/ Every procedure and med has at least a 20 per cent placebo effect. I think that this will end up like all of the other minimally invasive procedures: they will benefit a minority of cases that have been selected out based on a number of criteria.I hope I am proven wrong...but I doubt it. If it was really something then all the other competing minimally invasive therapies for bPH would have already gone by the wayside. Those include microwave therapy, heat therapy,vascular therapy, and others that are still being developed. Last edited by guitargabor; 03-03-2021 at 11:08 PM.
|
|
#41
03-03-2021, 07:22 PM
|
|||
|
|||
|
Quote:
|
|
#42
03-04-2021, 10:13 AM
|
|||
|
|||
|
Quote:
|
|
#43
03-04-2021, 10:33 AM
|
|||
|
|||
|
I was prescribed Flowmax after some neurologically induced issues - a brain tumor, the gift that keeps on giving! Flowmax never did anything that I could perceive, and the urologist was heading down a path of far more invasive testing and stronger drugs. I stopped taking it after about two years and dropped that doctor. No change for the worse. A good elder friend of mine had been taking it for as long as I've known him (~20 years) and he always had a constant cough - cannot go more than three minutes without a major bellow. I had to wear an earplug on that side if he was riding with me in the car. When he switched docs, the new one admitted that as a known side effect and he quit taking it too. The nagging cough is gone. FWIW, YMMV, etc.
|
|
#44
03-04-2021, 10:51 AM
|
||||
|
||||
|
"whose long term side effects are still not completely understood, and may not stand the test of time either. "
The urolift procedure also has had no long term studies on durability or side effects either. Please refer to the NIH article As I stated in my previous post-it is probably a great choice for a certain category of patient.You are in that category and I am please the results were good. I just wanted to point out that it is yet to be determined whether this will be "gold standard" treatment for BPH. This is my opinion from one who has treated this disease for over 40 years as a clinician,academic urologist as well as being a consultant/reseracher of medical device companies .
|
|
#45
03-04-2021, 10:58 AM
|
||||
|
||||
|
Quote:
For my part, TURP fixed me. I didn't have any general enlarging of the prostate, just a lobe which grew and covered my urethra, so maybe I was the perfect candidate. My neighbor had a lot more trouble recovering than I did, but he's 10 years my senior. My subsequent tests and exams have all been clear, and since my diet change the PSA numbers, which were never very high dropped off a cliff. They were high after the operation which is apparently normal, and stopped me from getting life insurance. They're below the lowest measured threshold at this point and after a note from the doc to the insurance company, I'm now insured at a very low rate.
|
