Hi! I'm Tony Crispino and this is my story about living with a diagnosis of cancer. I was diagnosed with advanced prostate cancer at the age of 44. I am 49 now and I am doing well. You can expand this window and read about my diagnosis...I log my thoughts and progress in my journal below.
In October of 2006, the 19.8 PSA on my PSA test was indication that I have cancer. On the 19th of December, Dr. Zommick. just walked into the room where me and my wife waited. "Well there's a little cancer down there." My first thought? What the heck is a "little cancer". As it turned out my biopsy confirmed in half of the 8 tissue samples were positive as follows:
Core 1> Right side. 20% + Adenocarcinoma Gleason 3+3=6
Core 2> Left side. 70% + Adenocarcinoma Gleason 3+4=7
Core 3> Left side. 80% + Adenocarcinoma Gleason 3+4=7
Core 4> Left side. 80% + Adenocarcinoma Gleason 3+4=7
After surgery at the City of Hope, by Dr. Tim Wilson, My Gleason was 4+3=7 and the TNM was pT3b, N0, Mx. The TNM indicates that the stage was just shy of incurable stage IV, ten lymph nodes were clean, and they could not confirm distant metastasis. A silver lining perhaps. But I had to continue additional therapies in hopes this does not come back. I started attending the Nevada Cancer Institute in February of '07. Under the care or Dr.'s Nick Vogelzang and David Pomerantz, we began ADT, or Androgen Deprivation Therapy. ADT is a therapy were my body is medically deprived of testosterone. The agents used are Lupron and Casodex. Casodex is a hormone drug that blocks androgens in the prostate cancer cells and also stops the generating of testosterone. After receiving that ADT, I also hit the area were the prostate was with 38 IMRT radiation treatments.
We thank you for your prayers, and we stay close to our faith!
May God Bless you all. As for me, I will gladly leave things in His hands...
PSA history:
October 3, 2006 19.8
October 10, 2006 18.9
November 27, 2006 13.9
Surgery February 16, 2007
February 28, 2007 0.9
March 12, 2007 0.1
March 23, 2007 <0.1
May 16, 2007 <0.1 Begin Adjuvant ADT and Radiation
July 18, 2007 <0.1
September 19, 2007 <0.1
January 29, 2008 <0.1
May 9, 2008 <0.1
September 17, 2008 <0.1
January 13, 2009 <0.1
May 11, 2009 <0.1 T=50
October 7, 2009 <0.1 T=21 PAP=0.3
January 4, 2010 <0.1 T=128 PAP=0.4
May 18, 2010 <0.1 T=230 PAP Untested
November 3, 2010 <0.1 T=263
May 18, 2011 <0.1 T=325
November 6, 2011 <0.1
May 2012, <0.1 T=332
Next Tests January 2013
