Today marked the midpoint in the radiological treatments for prostate cancer. It was the 18th treatment. 18 to go, scheduled to end on December 30. 5 per week except for Thanksgiving week and the week before Christmas. Only 4 treatments those weeks. The treatments last about 10 to 12 minutes once I get lined up under the machine that I suppose is assuming radiation at some very specific locations with some specific intensity.
Walking out today I thought about my father who died from prostate cancer in 1977 about two and a half months shy on one year from his prostatectomy. I don’t think he underwent any radiation or hormone therapy. I wasn’t living at home and our son Oliver was born the same day as my dad’s prostatectomy, so we were busy with Oliver’s entry to life and more concerned with that. My dad and Mom lived about 2 hours away from us at that time and we did visit and I was involved in some medical discussions with his physician. Leaving today I was thinking about the screening and therapies available to me that weren’t available to him. His last few months seemed to be difficult for him physically and mentally as he faced his oncoming death.
I’m assuming the prognosis for me is good. We’ll learn more about that after more treatments and opinions from the urologist who is over seeing my case. Still, many days I think about what my dad and mom went through from November 22, 1976 to September 4, 1977. Now I feel I have a better understanding of that situation for them.
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