I remember when I was first diagnosed with a prostate cancer recurrence, when I was told that I had advanced prostate cancer. More than any other times that I have been told I have cancer (I have melanoma, thyroid cancer, renal cancer and advanced prostate cancer) I felt the world stopped and my life was now going to be limited. I asked my wonderful oncologist, Dr. Daniel Petrylak, if perhaps I should immediately jump to chemotherapy (with docetaxel) either instead of or along with hormone therapy. Without missing a beat he recommended strongly against it.
From a logical, but very informed standpoint, it seemed to me to be a great idea. Why not just immediately move to the heavy guns and knock out this cancer and be done with it. Fortunately, I listened to Dr. Petrylak’s recommendation and just started hormone therapy (ADT). Now, it is seven years later and I continue to be successful on intermittent ADT and I am still feeling as healthy today as I was when I faced the diagnosis.
Not withstanding this, I do admit to occasionally wondering what if I had immediately moved to chemotherapy. Of course there is no way to ever answer this question. Perhaps I would be in even better shape today, bu