Nothing can prepare you for the words from your doctor “you’ve got cancer”. For me, it crept up after a few months of tests and suddenly there it was…it just didn’t seem real. However, post surgery it most certainly is.
I have to say that I received so many messages of support from my family, friends and many people whom I didn’t even know. Lots of prostate cancer survivors offered their support and contact info if I needed to bounce something off of them. a HUGE THANK YOU to all of you who reached out.
Here’s my semi-regular update diary in reverse order (most recent at the top):
September 6, 2022
It’s been a while since I’ve update things…it’s been 1 year since my surgery and my recovery progression has been fantastic, I have to say. I can’t emphasize how fortunate I am to have caught my prostate cancer early and been able to get healthy and train hard for my goal of racing in the Masters World Cycling Road Championships in Trento, Italy on September 18, 2022. I’ve been training hard using the Wahoo SYSTM training program, on the bike and in my basement! Evidenced by the before and after pictures below, 1 year apart:
Post surgery, August 28, 2021
One year of intensive core training using the WAHOO SYSTM platform, August 27, 2022
July 18, 2022
I’ve just passed another milestone in my recovery 10.5 months after prostate removal surgery. I’ve qualified for the Gran Fondo World Championships in Italy, taking place on September 18, 2022. Now, to ramp up the training intensity to get ready. I am SO VERY FORTUNATE that I’ve had a clear bill of health for 10 months.
APRIL 18, 2022
Just had my first 6 month PSA test and I’m happy to say that my PSA # was '“<0.10” which my urologist says is effectively zero. I feel so fortunate to have caught my prostate cancer early and for now, am totally cured.
So, it’s on to more intensity cycling training towards a goal of racing Masters in 2022 and beyond!
JANUARY 27, 2022
5 months post surgery! It feels like a long time since I went under the 5 arm robot for surgery but in reality, it’s only been 5 months. I’ve been very diligent with my core work and gradually increasing my aerobic training time (indoor and outdoor riding & skimo) giving myself adequate recovery. I still have minor urine leakage so wearing daily leak protection is still a thing unfortunately. Other than that though, I’m in the clear and doing very well. There will be a follow-up PSA test in mid-April, 6 months after my last all-clear test. In the meantime, I’ll keep on savouring every day and relishing in my good health.
DECEMBER 27, 2021
4 months have passed since surgery!!!! When you start counting months, not weeks post cancer surgery that’s a good thing. I’ve been proclaimed cancer free for the last 2 months which was such a relief.
Utilizing Wahoo SYSTM on a daily basis, my core strength has improved dramatically, my flexibility is coming along as well as my aerobic capacity on the KICKR indoor trainer. I’m looking forward to starting a SYSTM training plan in January to get me ready for the 2022 cycling season.
NOVEMBER 28, 2021
3 months!! Wow, it’s been 3 months since my prostate cancer surgery. 1 month ago, I was proclaimed cancer free by my urologist. Since then, I’ve been on a comeback trail of sorts, following the Wahoo SYSTM “Transition Up” training program including up to 1.5 hours on the indoor trainer. My flexibility, strength and aerobic power are slowly coming around…it’s been interesting to notice how slowly my body is adapting…maybe I’m expecting too much out of my 60 year old body but the good news is that each week, I’m noticing gradual improvement in my fitness as well as the incontinence side of things. I’ve graduated to using a ‘medium’ pad instead of the ‘maxi’ pad to absorb leaks…it may seem small, but for me, a HUGE leap in bladder control! Here’s to the month of improvements.
NOVEMBER 3, 2021
Today was a BIG DAY. Met with my Urologist, Dr. Fairey at Edmonton’s Kaye Clinic and he gave me the good news that I am cancer free! The surgery went as good as he could have possibly imagined (since I’m lean, there was no fat deposits in the way), my pathology came back ‘clean’ (no cancer detected on the outside of the prostate or lymph nodes that they removed) and my PSA test (taken 8 weeks after surgery) was less than 0.1 so all of this means that they got all of the cancer. Happy days!
I’m continuing my daily Kegel exercises as prescribed by my Physio, Mary Wood at Cura and can now begin cycling. Due to the cold weather here, I’ll be riding mostly indoors using the Wahoo SYSTM “Transition Up” training plan over November and December to regain my core strength, flexibility and aerobic power.
OCTOBER 11, 2021 - My 6 week post surgery ‘anniversary’ was last Friday, Oct 9. Hard to believe all this has happened to me over the last half a year. During the last 2 weeks I have seen a marked improvement in my core abdomen strength as the incisions from the Da Vinci device have healed well. My incontinence is slowly improving (very slowly) as I can retain control overnight and into the morning. The biggest change has been with my visits to CURA, my physio who has challenged me to work harder on my kegels…as well as introducing me to hypopressive exercises to strengthen my pelvic floor. 10’ of work, 5x/day. Looking forward to my next PSA test at the end of October and my urologist follow up on Nov 3.
SEPTEMBER 21, 2021 - Time flies when you’re have fun they said. Well, in my case, the last 2 weeks have been quite an adventure.
Small victories is the best way to describe it.
Yesterday, I visited my incontinence physio, Mary Wood at CURA. We did a check in on my kegel techniques and she confirmed that I was doing them properly! Confidence is key in this area, believe me! Time to step up the kegel work, 5x/day of the 20% efforts 15” on, 10” off and then 3x/day of max 1” effort with 10’ recovery x 5. Seems to bring me back to doing intervals in my track racing days!
Just within the last few days, I saw that my pathology results were put up on the MyChart app…dangerous to look at from a layman’s perspective but I looked anyways! With my follow up appointment not until Nov 3, I really needed to know and couldn’t wait that long. Could you? Trying to decipher the medical terminology was difficult so I reached out to nurse Stephanie at Dr. Fairey’s office and she went through it with me and confirmed that there was no cancer on the outside of the prostate. It appears as though he got it all. Another relief and stressor to mark off the list.
In the last week, 3 weeks post surgery, I have had a break through! Wearing Adult protection to keep the urine leaks under control is hard enough on the ego. but not being able to control the leaks is very frustrating, especially since I did the kegel exercises for a month before surgery. Now that the catheter has been removed, I’ve started the kegels again and for the FIRST TIME, I have been able to hold my pee and make it to the bathroom without leaking!
Next, 2 weeks post surgery I started feeling weird sensations in my lower right rib cage. sometimes severe shots of pain, more so when I was on my right side. After 5 days of continuing pain (you know, tough it out, right?), I contacted my doctor and he sent me for blood test and a chest x-ray. Within a few hours I was sent to the hospital for a CT scan and they found 2 pulmonary embolisms (blood clots) in my right lung. Blood thinners are now the order of the day for 4 months.
First, I had to tackle the massive constipation…final antidote was 250ml of Citromag - you know, the stuff that makes you gag! It’s supposed to work within a 1-6 hour range and FINALLY, after 6 hours, relief! I’ve never felt that good about a bowel movement, ever!
SEPTEMBER 7, 2021 - You know that Yin & Yang thing - where you really want something but the consequences might not be what you’d hoped for? Well, today I got my catheter pulled out which was a huge relief as the whole urethral ‘area’ was getting mighty perturbed with that thing sticking up there for so long.
So, that’s the relief part but then the realization that you have to wear an adult diaper for an indeterminate amount of time kicks in. “It’ll take a few days for everything to relax again” you’re told as every time to stand up, pee fills the diaper…thank god for whatever weird absorbent stuff is in those things.
Then there’s the constipation thing that has thrown me for a loop. On and off small bowel movements for last 11 days. My GP has sent me for a bowel x-Ray…stay tuned for tomorrow.
SEPTEMBER 6, 2021 - For the last 11 days my life has consisted of draining the catheter bag 3-5 times/day via the valve at the bottom of the bag and in the evening switching the bag from a smaller day bag to larger night version. The biggest item that the care team encouraged me to do we start gentle walking every day. 2-3 short 5-10’ walks to start. Gradually, I’ve built up to 2, 30’ walks/day as my abdomen recovers and gets stronger every day. The one major issue has been constipation 9well, let’s not kid ourselves, the catheter is a major pain too!). I stopped the pain meds within 2 days of the operation and started on stool softeners, prunes, prune juice and PEG. In retrospect, I should have coupled that with regular H2O drinking all day. Now with 3 days until i get my catheter out, I’ve been putting back a 16oz bike bottle of water every 2 hours or so. It’s as if I’m on an endurance ride every day…the goal being to keep the urine colour pale yellow to clear.
AUGUST 27, 2021 - Shaking, shaking, shaking violently is a very alarming way to wake up but I soon realized where I was. After some time (?) in the recovery room I was brought back to ward to get some movement going and food in me as I hadn’t eaten since the day before. My gut had 6 small incisions from the robot arms stapled shut and a catheter hung out of me. By the next morning the anesthetic had started to wear off so a few pain meds later, I was driven home by my caring wife.
Arriving at the hospital with my wife, we checked into and began the surgery prep. For me, being a healthy guy with no allergies it was pretty straight forward. Then it was time to wait for the call. My anesthesiologist neighbours came by to say hello (he had actually been scheduled to work on me but declined as he knew me too well!). I’ve been under anesthetic 4 times before (not for a bike racing accident believe it or not…as he knocks on wood) but it’s always a weird feeling as you hear the confident voice of the surgeon and being asked to breathe deeply into the oxygen mask. As they wheeled the Da Vinci surgery robot towards me, I was out.
AUGUST 6th 2021 - I got the call. My surgery was scheduled 4 weeks away on August 27. It was time to get ultra-diligent on the kegels and prepare my mind for what was to come. Staying fit has always been a passion of mine and I vowed to continue my riding and core strength work up until THE DAY.
JULY, 2021 - Queue my next appointment in July with male kegel expert Mary Wood of CURA Physio. Mary has been partnering with the Kaye Clinic to research advances in pre and post operative prostate cancer therapy. With 2 sessions under my belt (literally!), I was practising my Kegels 2x/day in various intervals and intensities. Interestingly. it’s not about how strong you can contract the muscles, more about how you can control low intensity pulses. In retrospect, I should have placed more emphasis on these exercises and increased quantity and quality over time.
On July 9 I attended an excellent Prostatectomy learning session put on by the wonderful people at Edmonton’s Kaye Clinic, one of North America’s premier prostate cancer facilities. We learned about what to expect before, during and after surgery. Basically, you need to get your Kegel muscles strong BEFORE surgery so when you get your catheter out 7-10 days after surgery, you have a better chance of controlling urine flow as soon as possible.
So, on the wait list for cancer surgery. In the meantime, prostatitis (prostate infection) reared it’s ugly head again and it was back on antibiotics but this time, not a sun-sensitive version!
JUNE, 2021 - By the end of June I was feeling good again so I arranged a 5 hour gravel ride with some good friends in the far Western regions outside of Edmonton. What was I thinking? I knew I was in trouble after the ride started…you know that feeling when your legs are not quite under you on the bike? As the ride progressed I became weaker and weaker, eventually convincing the guys to take an easier way back to the cars. That was not the half of it. Within 12 hours, my body was covered in an awful rash, not itchy and not just the areas exposed to the sun. It was ugly. A few calls, emergency room visits and a skin biopsy later, it all came down to being on the Cipro and exposing myself to the sun. What an idiot I was.
In mid-June I woke up shivering…with a fever. A few quick calls and blood and urine tests later I was diagnosed with prostatitis (prostate infection) and put on antibiotics. I vaguely remember the pharmacist mentioning that this antibiotic (Cipro) would make me ‘sun sensitive’. How bad could that be I thought?
Within a few weeks in early June we had the results of the biopsy…a 3+3 Gleason score which means that prostate cancer is present but the Gleason score I had, showed that it was a slow growth form of prostate cancer. On June 16, after a consultation with my excellent urologist, Dr. Adrian Fairey, we decided that surgery to remove the prostate would be the best viable option given that I was a ‘lean’ 60 year old and would be able to handle the stress of an operation. To ensure that my cancer had not spread, we did a bone scan on June 10 which came out negative.
MAY, 2021 - A month later, on May 19, I had my prostate biopsy…which I have to say was a very uncomfortable experience…not painful, or scary, just weird. The Kaye Clinic staff and radiologist who performed the biopsy were excellent in their care and prep. The biopsy itself takes only 15 minutes but the feeling of a stapler like device being inserted and punching into my prostate to take 16 minute core samples was very disconcerting to say the least…I just kept telling myself that this was going to help us get the full picture of my ‘situation’.
APRIL, 2021 - Then in April, just for ‘fun’, I got the call that my long awaited hernia surgery had been scheduled for April 19! After conferring with my health practitioners, I was cleared to get it done.
My Urologist explained the the cup was still half full and we needed to get a prostate biopsy done to get the full story.
Another 10 days passed by and I received a message on my phone that I had test results available on MyHealth app that the Provincial government provides. Of course I was curious and opened the results page…was I in for a shock! My MRI results included a lot of language I didn’t quite understand but the P-RADS score came in as a 4 out 5: “Significant Cancer May Be Present”. I was taken aback and then realized that my follow up with the Urologist wasn’t for another week. Knowing that I wouldn’t be able to sleep, I messaged the doctor’s office and they got me into a follow up call the next day. Whew, that was a relief.
MARCH, 2021 - 2 weeks later on March 15 I found myself at a state-of-the-art facility in South Edmonton where they have a “3 Tesla MRI”, one of the best, highest resolution MRI’s on the market. I am getting more claustrophobic as I get older (weird) and mentioned this to the staff. They were very comforting and offered help in coping with that feeling. 30 minutes later I was on my way.
Fortunately, I live in Edmonton, Alberta where we have one of North America’s leading team of prostate health researchers and doctors aligned with the University of Alberta. With my PSA values in hand (0.8 on both tests, which is relatively low), I went to the University Hospital’s Kaye Clinic to visit my Urologist for the first time. Not knowing what to expect, he was very informative, to the point and matter of fact, which I appreciated. Simply put, he put his very experienced finger inside of me (I think he does 10 digit tests/day!) and also noticed a ‘palpable lesion’ or in easy to explain words, a hard lump on my prostate. Next step, get an MRI.
FEBRUARY, 2021 - Getting an annual prostate check up from your Doc is never that fun. The finger up the ‘you-know'-what’ and copping a feel is not what you’d call an everyday experience. In my 50’s, I started getting checked ‘almost’ annually - I slipped a few times and lost track of the dates. Fortunately, I went to see my GP this last February, 2021 and submitted to ‘the digit test’! After feeling ‘something’, my Doc thought it best to refer me to a Urologist and while I was waiting for that appointment, get 2 PSA blood tests done, 2 weeks apart.
