Dang!

I just got a call from Dr. Shimkus' office (my oncologist). I have to come in *tomorrow* for another hormone blockage shot (Trelstar) -- my PSA has gone up to 5.8.

Dang, dang, dang!

Last month it was 2.6. Dr. Shimkus said I would need to go back on the Trelstar if my PSA rose above 4.0. This is much higher than that.

Another important measure of prostate cancer is "doubling time" -- that is, how long it takes for your PSA to double. In my case my PSA *more* than doubled in just 1 month -- not a very good sign. The increased PSA is a direct indication that there's increased cancer activity in my prostate. (And especially given my recent widespread bone metastases, it might extend even further than that, although I'm fervently hoping that this isn't the case!)

In the larger scheme of things, a 5.8 PSA is still manageable -- doctors often tell their patients not to worry too much until it gets over 10. And after all, in the first couple of months that I was diagnosed, my PSA was as high as 222.

But still.

Dang.