When Are You Considered to Have A Prostate Cancer Recurrence?
No matter how many years may have passed since your primary treatment (surgery, radiation, HIFU, etc.) for prostate cancer, if your PSA begins to rise, or if your PSA never became very low following primary treatment, you have Reoccurring (advanced) prostate cancer. This means that your cancer has returned, or was never brought under control.
The medical profession has very specific definitions as to when you have experienced a prostate cancer recurrence.
If your primary treatment was any type of radiation, including electron beam radiotherapy (EBRT, IMRT, IGRT), proton beam radiotherapy (PBRT), brachytherapy (including HDR brachytherapy) you are considered to have Reoccurring prostate cancer IF:
• You experience three (3) consecutive rises in your PSA score after having reached your nadir* score. (This is the “ASTRO
OR:
• After you have reached your nadir* score, and your PSA increases by 2.0 over any period. Example: If your nadir* is 1.2, after which your PSA rises to 3.2 or more, you have experienced a recurrence. (This is the “PHOENIX definition.”)
*Nadir score is defined as your lowest PSA achieved after co