Health

[Parafox]

Just to (hopefully) lighten things:

 

https://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=video&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwiXsoznhauMAxWhVkEAHVk3H7EQuAJ6BAgJEAU&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.tiktok.com%2F%40billyconnollyfans%2Fvideo%2F7084649279192567045&usg=AOvVaw0ASzMn-HObrBFBiHSKLEth&opi=89978449

[grobyfox1990]

On 26/03/2025 at 19:36, Izzy said:

The joys of booking travel insurance insurance and declaring your pre existing medical conditions.

 

4 days in the USA?

 

That'll be £450 please 

Wtf man. You’d be a lot better off getting a premium credit card and getting the insurance via that. Plus all the other benefits obvs 

[foxfanazer]

Started having daily 60ml shots of a turmeric drink as I keep picking up colds and bugs and generally feeling lethargic. After 4 days I already feel like I have more energy and feel sharper.

 

Anybody else use this?

[jgtuk]

14 minutes ago, foxfanazer said:

Started having daily 60ml shots of a turmeric drink as I keep picking up colds and bugs and generally feeling lethargic. After 4 days I already feel like I have more energy and feel sharper.

 

Anybody else use this?

I tried the “golden Turmeric” recipe for 12 months but it made no difference at all. And it tasted fowl. 
I’ve heard other people say positive things though. 

Edited 1 April 2025 by jgtuk

[jgtuk]

Anyone had a Colonoscopy? 
I have to have one next week. I’ve been offered sedation but don’t really want it as I need to work in the afternoon and apparently can’t drive or use machinery for 24hrs if I do. 
I’ve a high pain threshold so not worried but not sure what to expect. 

[Zear0]

8 minutes ago, jgtuk said:

Anyone had a Colonoscopy? 
I have to have one next week. I’ve been offered sedation but don’t really want it as I need to work in the afternoon and apparently can’t drive or use machinery for 24hrs if I do. 
I’ve a high pain threshold so not worried but not sure what to expect. 

Yeah I've had the pleasure and also didn't go for the sedatives as had to drive as well.  Without being too course, getting the thing in isn't the greatest sensation in the world but once they're up and running I didn't find it too bad.

 

Just to prepare yourself, they blow air up there to inflate things so you'll be doing the most extraordinary farts. 

 

Best of luck!

[Izzy]

25 minutes ago, jgtuk said:

Anyone had a Colonoscopy? 
I have to have one next week. I’ve been offered sedation but don’t really want it as I need to work in the afternoon and apparently can’t drive or use machinery for 24hrs if I do. 
I’ve a high pain threshold so not worried but not sure what to expect. 

Before I had my colon removed about 20 years ago (for Ulcerative Colitis), I had numerous Colonoscopy's.

 

Unlike you, my pain threshold is low so after the first one, I always insisted on sedation. Not just local anesthetic where I'm drowsy, but knock me the fvck out with a GA and send me to sleep please.

 

I now have regular 'Pouchoscopys' (j-pouch formed from small intestine) and still insist on a GA. Luckily I work for myself and my wife is always on hand to drive me there and back.

 

If you must drive/use machinery within 24 hours then yeah, you'll have to avoid any time of sedation.

 

Hopefully it goes smoothly with little discomfort, good results, and no need for any follow up.

 

Look after your colons everyone, trust me, it's hell without one!

 

Edited 1 April 2025 by Izzy

[JonnyBoy]

51 minutes ago, foxfanazer said:

Started having daily 60ml shots of a turmeric drink as I keep picking up colds and bugs and generally feeling lethargic. After 4 days I already feel like I have more energy and feel sharper.

 

Anybody else use this?

We make our own in the blender saves a fortune rather than buying those shots. 
 

 

fresh turmeric, pineapple, ginger, oranges, lemon in the blender (all apart from skin) then siv and put into a bottle for the week. Gives us about a litre 

 

[foxfanazer]

8 minutes ago, JonnyBoy said:

We make our own in the blender saves a fortune rather than buying those shots. 
 

 

fresh turmeric, pineapple, ginger, oranges, lemon in the blender (all apart from skin) then siv and put into a bottle for the week. Gives us about a litre 

 

That's brilliant thanks, will give it a go

[jgtuk]

9 minutes ago, JonnyBoy said:

We make our own in the blender saves a fortune rather than buying those shots. 
 

 

fresh turmeric, pineapple, ginger, oranges, lemon in the blender (all apart from skin) then siv and put into a bottle for the week. Gives us about a litre 

 

That sounds fantastic. How much of each ingredient?

[JonnyBoy]

27 minutes ago, jgtuk said:

That sounds fantastic. How much of each ingredient?

Whole pineapple, two oranges two lemons, 4-5 stems of ginger and 4-5 stems of fresh turmeric - think we add a splash of water as well to get the right consistency 

 

about £4 but but gets you about 15 shots out of it. Trick is to siv it over a bowel then pour into a bottle that we keep in the fridge 

 

We do a green one with apples, ginger, cucumber, celery and spinach 

 

Edited 1 April 2025 by JonnyBoy

[ian__marshall]

3 hours ago, jgtuk said:

Anyone had a Colonoscopy? 
I have to have one next week. I’ve been offered sedation but don’t really want it as I need to work in the afternoon and apparently can’t drive or use machinery for 24hrs if I do. 
I’ve a high pain threshold so not worried but not sure what to expect. 

Have to have them on a routine basis. First time, I thought I'd be fine just with the gas sedative but lasted all of about 20 seconds before I realised I needed to go intravenous. I go straight for intravenous now. Couldn't imagine doing it without. It's uncomfortable enough under sedation, so I'd strongly recommend it.

 

The first 10 minutes or so whilst they're working their way across to the ileocecal valve is not pleasant as the peristaltic motion of the bowel is pushing in the opposite direction of travel to the camera and you feel every movement. It's certainly much more comfortable on the return leg.

 

Best advice I can give you is follow the bowel prep instructions to the letter, and in my experience request Moviprep. There's better tasting ones but it does the job of cleansing the bowel very efficiently. Had to have a different brand last time which tasted better, but it took forever to evacuate my bowel and I wasn't able to get to sleep until about 2.30am so I was knackered the day of my screening which made me feel more anxious. 

 

Finally, enjoy your meal post screening. Genuinely the best meal you'll ever eat, makes you really appreciate food. 

[AyewJoking]

1 hour ago, ian__marshall said:

Have to have them on a routine basis. First time, I thought I'd be fine just with the gas sedative but lasted all of about 20 seconds before I realised I needed to go intravenous. I go straight for intravenous now. Couldn't imagine doing it without. It's uncomfortable enough under sedation, so I'd strongly recommend it.

 

The first 10 minutes or so whilst they're working their way across to the ileocecal valve is not pleasant as the peristaltic motion of the bowel is pushing in the opposite direction of travel to the camera and you feel every movement. It's certainly much more comfortable on the return leg.

 

Best advice I can give you is follow the bowel prep instructions to the letter, and in my experience request Moviprep. There's better tasting ones but it does the job of cleansing the bowel very efficiently. Had to have a different brand last time which tasted better, but it took forever to evacuate my bowel and I wasn't able to get to sleep until about 2.30am so I was knackered the day of my screening which made me feel more anxious. 

 

Finally, enjoy your meal post screening. Genuinely the best meal you'll ever eat, makes you really appreciate food. 

McDonalds it is then

[HighPeakFox]

On 01/04/2025 at 20:08, jgtuk said:

Anyone had a Colonoscopy? 
I have to have one next week. I’ve been offered sedation but don’t really want it as I need to work in the afternoon and apparently can’t drive or use machinery for 24hrs if I do. 
I’ve a high pain threshold so not worried but not sure what to expect. 

Yes. I went without sedation. It was uncomfortable at times but not for long and quite interesting in a way. 

 

Not that I'm lining up for doing it again mind you.... 

Edited 2 April 2025 by HighPeakFox

[Monk]

On 26/03/2025 at 19:36, Izzy said:

The joys of booking travel insurance insurance and declaring your pre existing medical conditions.

 

4 days in the USA?

 

That'll be £450 please 

I’ve just paid £2400 for an annual policy, but accepting that I was very seriously unwell last year with lymphoma. It sounds a lot but I can’t imagine not being able to travel, with family in the US. 

[Monk]

19 hours ago, jgtuk said:

Anyone had a Colonoscopy? 
I have to have one next week. I’ve been offered sedation but don’t really want it as I need to work in the afternoon and apparently can’t drive or use machinery for 24hrs if I do. 
I’ve a high pain threshold so not worried but not sure what to expect. 

If you’re having a routine check I’d go without sedation but if you’re going though something like IBD or you’re already in pain or discomfort in your digestive system, then take the sedation, it can become v unpleasant. 

[jgtuk]

On 01/04/2025 at 20:08, jgtuk said:

Anyone had a Colonoscopy? 
I have to have one next week. I’ve been offered sedation but don’t really want it as I need to work in the afternoon and apparently can’t drive or use machinery for 24hrs if I do. 
I’ve a high pain threshold so not worried but not sure what to expect. 

As an update:

Urology appt went well, nothing significant apart from unusual shaped and enlarged prostate - keep taking the meds basically.

 

Colonoscopy was yesterday - decided to opt for no sedation or gas & air etc.

Was a longer procedure than I expected (they said I had a challenging bowel) but wasn't too uncomfortable.

They took 4 images of the Caecum, 4 biopsies from ascending colon, 4 biopsies from the descending colon, took image and removed and retrieved a polyp from sigmoid colon and took an image of  the anal margin.

All pretty much routine I presume, biopsy results in 12 weeks max...

 

Thanks for the advice from everyone and best wishes to anyone going through medical interventions of any kind.

 

[mozartfox]

I thought I would give those interested in an up date on my journey. Yesterday was a milestone in that I received the last of 20 Radiotherapy sessions.  The sessions themselves are quick and harmless - around 5-6 minutes including set-up.  

 

I have experienced various side effects. Initially tiredness in the first week  to an itchy back and frquent visits to pass urine in latter weeks!  These should all gradually subside with each passing week.

 

Apparently this CHHiPS treatment effects different people in different ways -  i.e. just like any medical treatments/medication.  I now have to wait 6 weeks before making a PSA Test.  The radiation keeps working for up to weeks after the last session. Two weeks after the PSA Test, I have a follow up with head Doctor.  Then I should know if the Tumor has zapped.........

 

I sincerely trust those that were having similar issues are all on the mend - unlike our glorious Football Team.

[mozartfox]

On 09/04/2025 at 09:20, jgtuk said:

As an update:

Urology appt went well, nothing significant apart from unusual shaped and enlarged prostate - keep taking the meds basically.

 

Colonoscopy was yesterday - decided to opt for no sedation or gas & air etc.

Was a longer procedure than I expected (they said I had a challenging bowel) but wasn't too uncomfortable.

They took 4 images of the Caecum, 4 biopsies from ascending colon, 4 biopsies from the descending colon, took image and removed and retrieved a polyp from sigmoid colon and took an image of  the anal margin.

All pretty much routine I presume, biopsy results in 12 weeks max...

 

Thanks for the advice from everyone and best wishes to anyone going through medical interventions of any kind.

 

Good luck my friend and keep us up-dated!

[mozartfox]

I thought I will give those that are interested in Prostate Cancer Treatments an up-date.  I took the first PSA test two months after completion of the Radiotherapy back at the end of May.  The reading was 3.48 compared to the reading at time of diagnosis of 2.68.  So I endured the dreaded PSA Bounce although my Oncologist said when carry -out PSA testing, it is advisable to use the same labs. Note Doctors would not normally advise doing anything with a low reading of 2.68, but something told me to do an MRI and I was then diagnosed with cancer following a lesion showing up on the scan, followed by a painful biopsy in Malaysia.

 

My Oncologist said let's wait a further 2 months and do another PSA test. He also recommended having a Urine Test and some other readings - not sure what these were as I just passed his instructions to my GP.

 

So I did the second Test last week (at the same Lab) and the result was a PSA reading of 2.02.  So a 40% drop in two months.  Normally the expected drop is around 20%.  The Doc was very happy and looks like (fingers crossed) I may have arrested the Cancer although will need a MRI scan next year to check if all the cancerous cells have been zapped.  4  yearly Blood Tests are also advisable.  This can be beaten if detected early enough.

 

So Gents, if any of you and getting up often in the night for a pee, or there is a history of Prostate Cancer in the family, please demand 6 monthly PSA checks, or pay for the tests yourself!  I paid for all my treatment rather than waiting for the Austrian Social Health system to come into action (which is now on par with the NHS).. Money well spent.......unlike that on Soumare.

 

If anyone has any questions, I will answer in this thread or you can PM me.

 

Stay safe my Fox Brothers!

 

[Alf Bentley]

As Mozart has returned to write a 2nd symphony, I'll do likewise.

Might be helpful, especially as I took a different treatment route and am almost certainly heading for further treatment.

 

Before doing so, I'd like to echo @mozartfox: if you're 45-50+ and/or have any relevant family history of issues, please get a PSA (diagnostic starting point).

Also, remember that prostate cancer often has no symptoms whatsoever - and that close female relatives with breast or ovarian cancer may also increase prostate cancer risk.

 

I had robot-assisted surgery to remove my prostate in March. The recovery was a lot easier than you'd imagine, though having a urinary catheter for 9 days after the op was no fun.

I was discharged after 24 hours, had almost zero pain (just discomfort sitting on hard surfaces in the early weeks) and other side-effects were minor or quickly resolved: e.g. some minor urinary incontinence, conquered within days. I got tired slightly more quickly than usual for a few weeks, but that soon faded, and my energy/mobility was pretty much 100% from Day 1.....apart from the 9 days of catheter chafing in the right honourable member, which discouraged movement....

 

Post-surgical analysis of the bit cut out of me yielded pros and cons:

- "Negative margins": This was good news, meaning the external surface of the bit cut out was cancer-free - all cancer in the immediate vicinity of the prostate was safely contained/removed

- This notwithstanding the fact that the cancer had indeed grown beyond the prostate capsule, upping it from Stage 2 to Stage 3a prostate cancer

- My Gleason score (aggressiveness of cancer) was upped from Gleason 4+5 at biopsy to 5+4 at post-op analysis, the second most aggressive rating possible...

 

PSA readings after a prostatectomy are expected to be quite different to those quoted by Mozart after his radiotherapy. As you no longer have a prostate, PSA should quickly fall to zero or at least a mere trace, if cancer has been fully cured....

- My 1st PSA reading was 0.1: very low, but not zero, so would either drop to zero or start rising from there. Unfortunately, it did the latter....

- 2nd PSA: 0.19

- 3rd PSA: 0.3

Thus, I clearly still have prostate cancer at a microscopic but growing level - and growing quite quickly, as it's such an aggressive one.

 

I had another PET scan yesterday and am now awaiting a consultant's appointment to discover the findings and implications of that. PET scans are the gold standard scans designed to identify the location of cancer at an earlier, smaller stage than other scans.

 

As I understand it, the potential outcomes & implications of the PET scan are:

- Most likely: localised cancer identified in prostate bed (area where prostate used to be) and/or nearby lymph nodes -> 4+ weeks of radiotherapy with or without hormone therapy to cure

- Small amount of metastatic cancer identified elsewhere in body: if in a single, suitable area, radiotherapy could still cure this....but systemic approaches to hold it at bay, not cure it, might be required if it's in multiple locations or in organs where radiotherapy can't be used...the worst potential outcome

- The PET scan may not identify the cancer location (0.3 or even 0.5 PSA means the cancer is still tiny). This leaves a choice between blind radiotherapy of prostate bed/lymph nodes (risking needless damage to healthy tissue & needless side-effects) or waiting a bit longer until the location can be pinpointed (allows proper targeting, but with risk of it going metastatic)

(Essentially zero chance of PSA increase being caused by anything other than some escaped prostate cancer cells)

 

I still feel exceptionally fit and well - and am now on my second new job since treatment. As usual, uncertainty is the only thing that bothers me, rather than adversity.

My realistic hope is that the scan identifies microscopic cancer located in the prostate bed & I just have a few weeks of radiotherapy to cure it (would definitely prefer to avoid hormone therapy if at all possible.....did you know that the "chemical castration" sometimes prescribed for rapists/paedophiles is just another name for "hormone therapy"? )

 

Good luck to all (especially me ) - and, if there's any chance you might be at risk, go to your GP and get that PSA blood test. Prostate cancer caught early is almost always cured, but metastatic prostate cancer needlessly shortens a lot of lives....

 

 

[Zear0]

Best of luck to you both.  Amazingly written considering the context 

[mozartfox]

10 hours ago, Alf Bentley said:

As Mozart has returned to write a 2nd symphony, I'll do likewise.

Might be helpful, especially as I took a different treatment route and am almost certainly heading for further treatment.

 

Before doing so, I'd like to echo @mozartfox: if you're 45-50+ and/or have any relevant family history of issues, please get a PSA (diagnostic starting point).

Also, remember that prostate cancer often has no symptoms whatsoever - and that close female relatives with breast or ovarian cancer may also increase prostate cancer risk.

 

I had robot-assisted surgery to remove my prostate in March. The recovery was a lot easier than you'd imagine, though having a urinary catheter for 9 days after the op was no fun.

I was discharged after 24 hours, had almost zero pain (just discomfort sitting on hard surfaces in the early weeks) and other side-effects were minor or quickly resolved: e.g. some minor urinary incontinence, conquered within days. I got tired slightly more quickly than usual for a few weeks, but that soon faded, and my energy/mobility was pretty much 100% from Day 1.....apart from the 9 days of catheter chafing in the right honourable member, which discouraged movement....

 

Post-surgical analysis of the bit cut out of me yielded pros and cons:

- "Negative margins": This was good news, meaning the external surface of the bit cut out was cancer-free - all cancer in the immediate vicinity of the prostate was safely contained/removed

- This notwithstanding the fact that the cancer had indeed grown beyond the prostate capsule, upping it from Stage 2 to Stage 3a prostate cancer

- My Gleason score (aggressiveness of cancer) was upped from Gleason 4+5 at biopsy to 5+4 at post-op analysis, the second most aggressive rating possible...

 

PSA readings after a prostatectomy are expected to be quite different to those quoted by Mozart after his radiotherapy. As you no longer have a prostate, PSA should quickly fall to zero or at least a mere trace, if cancer has been fully cured....

- My 1st PSA reading was 0.1: very low, but not zero, so would either drop to zero or start rising from there. Unfortunately, it did the latter....

- 2nd PSA: 0.19

- 3rd PSA: 0.3

Thus, I clearly still have prostate cancer at a microscopic but growing level - and growing quite quickly, as it's such an aggressive one.

 

I had another PET scan yesterday and am now awaiting a consultant's appointment to discover the findings and implications of that. PET scans are the gold standard scans designed to identify the location of cancer at an earlier, smaller stage than other scans.

 

As I understand it, the potential outcomes & implications of the PET scan are:

- Most likely: localised cancer identified in prostate bed (area where prostate used to be) and/or nearby lymph nodes -> 4+ weeks of radiotherapy with or without hormone therapy to cure

- Small amount of metastatic cancer identified elsewhere in body: if in a single, suitable area, radiotherapy could still cure this....but systemic approaches to hold it at bay, not cure it, might be required if it's in multiple locations or in organs where radiotherapy can't be used...the worst potential outcome

- The PET scan may not identify the cancer location (0.3 or even 0.5 PSA means the cancer is still tiny). This leaves a choice between blind radiotherapy of prostate bed/lymph nodes (risking needless damage to healthy tissue & needless side-effects) or waiting a bit longer until the location can be pinpointed (allows proper targeting, but with risk of it going metastatic)

(Essentially zero chance of PSA increase being caused by anything other than some escaped prostate cancer cells)

 

I still feel exceptionally fit and well - and am now on my second new job since treatment. As usual, uncertainty is the only thing that bothers me, rather than adversity.

My realistic hope is that the scan identifies microscopic cancer located in the prostate bed & I just have a few weeks of radiotherapy to cure it (would definitely prefer to avoid hormone therapy if at all possible.....did you know that the "chemical castration" sometimes prescribed for rapists/paedophiles is just another name for "hormone therapy"? )

 

Good luck to all (especially me ) - and, if there's any chance you might be at risk, go to your GP and get that PSA blood test. Prostate cancer caught early is almost always cured, but metastatic prostate cancer needlessly shortens a lot of lives....

 

 

Hello my friend.  I am sorry to hear of these latest complications.  It sounds to me you are good hands.  On the subject of  Radiotherapy, whilst I did go with the 20 session route,   I did initially contemplate going with Cyber Knife method, which I believe only requires 5-6 sessions as extremely accurate.  I would have to have gone to Salzburg for that so I opted for 20 sessions in Vienna. My older brother had two months of hormone injections prior to his radiotherapy treatment as he was told it was to shrink the tumor.  (He is now in remission).  So may be you do not need hormone treatment if the scan shows up some microscopic infected area?    I sincerely hope you can get this sorted quickly with Radiotherapy only which has a very high success rate !   Keep us updated and keep positive, as cancer hates positive people!!   

[Arkie Bennett]

Had a colonoscopy on Sunday after my stool sample showed blood. On Wednesday I received the shocking news that the growth they found is cancerous. They aren't hanging around, I had scans yesterday and today which will show the extent of the cancer. Next week they will plan what to do. It will definitely need surgery. Hopefully it hasn't spread. I'm so scared.

[spacemunky]

1 hour ago, Arkie Bennett said:

Had a colonoscopy on Sunday after my stool sample showed blood. On Wednesday I received the shocking news that the growth they found is cancerous. They aren't hanging around, I had scans yesterday and today which will show the extent of the cancer. Next week they will plan what to do. It will definitely need surgery. Hopefully it hasn't spread. I'm so scared.

Good thing you got it checked out.

 

Wishing you the very best mate.