Hi-Risk/Recurrent/Advanced PCa Virtual Support – Men & Caregivers Recording, Dec 21, 2020

Hi-Risk/Recurrent/Advanced PCa Virtual Support – Men & Caregivers Recording, Dec 21, 2020

 

Editor’s Choice: Hear social media phenom, Bryce Olson, a 50-yr old metastatic prostate cancer patient, speak about his treatment to date and how he plans to find a personalized and innovative path forward. (rd)

Topics Discussed

Young, metastatic man Bryce Olson & his virtual brainstorming strategy;oral LHRH relugolix; holding steady on LHRH+abi; oligo-Mx strategies; cario issues around LHRH; PSA variability; PSA v scans; how do you know if you’re PSMA avid?; chemothreapy or 2nd line androgen therapy for recurrence; when to stop adjuvant ADT; abi +LHRH stem denovo Mx – debulk?

Chat Log

Bryce Olson (to Everyone): 6:02 PM: Bryce is on too. Took me a sec to get mic and camera working

Mark Perloe : 6:26 PM: Thanks for the ORGOVYX email. It will be interesting on cost and availability.

Brad Power (to Everyone): 6:27 PM: Wired: One Man’s Search for the DNA Data That Could Save His Life. https://www.wired.com/story/one-mans-search-for-dna-data-that-could-save-his-life/

Larry Fish (to Everyone): 6:28 PM: An A.I. challenge – deep Mind – individual now, but how to make it universal

John I (to Everyone): 6:29 PM: Thanks, Brad. Any other links you have are welcome–interesting (though frustrating & emotional) story

Brad Power (to Everyone): 6:29 PM: https://www.researchtothepeople.org/bryce

AnCan – rick (to Everyone): 6:36 PM: Guys – please sign up to our Blog and you’ll get a note that the recording has posted. https://ancan.org/blog/ Our groups are ALWAYS recorded, Larry.

Ancan – Jake Hannam (to Everyone): 6:40 PM: Thanks to Peter Monaco for posting our videos!

Tracy Saville (to Everyone): 6:40 PM: Done. Added myself as a monthly US TOO donor as well.

Ancan – Jake Hannam (to Everyone): 6:43 PM: Bi-specific T-cell engagers (BITE)

John I (to Everyone): 6:44 PM: Thanks, Jake

Brad Power (to Everyone): 6:45 PM: Topic: Bryce Case Launch Time: Dec 23, 2020 09:00 AM Pacific Time (US and Canada) Join from PC, Mac, Linux, iOS or Android: https://stanford.zoom.us/j/99737755758?pwd=VEFETlhqckMxU3VQT2lZY1Vod0cxZz09 Password: 016550

Ancan – Jake Hannam (to Everyone): 6:52 PM: https://www.urotoday.com/video-lectures/esmo-2020/video/1937-discussing-the-efficacy-and-safety-from-results-of-the-dose-escalation-arm-of-amg-160-a-bispecific-t-cell-engager-bite-immune-therapy-targeting-psma-for-metastatic-castration-resistant-prostate-cancer-ben-tran-oliver-sartor-and-neal-shore.html

Bryce Olson (to Everyone): 6:53 PM: Thank you so much guys! It was an honor to be with you tonight

John I (to Everyone): 6:54 PM: Thank you, Bryce–and Brad too!

Mark Perloe (to Everyone): 7:41 PM: I would want to know if radiation might be indicated for spot treatment.

Mark Finn (to Everyone): 7:50 PM: Rick – gotta go. Please let me know if there are any issues with my case that I can share next time. BTW – I had chemo after prostectomy with only a few lesions.

John I (to Everyone): 8:00 PM: Gotta run. Merry Christmas to those who celebrate it!

JImmy Greenfield (Private): 8:07 PM: Rick I may be down to Nancy Dawson, no one is coming through on the 2nd opinion. Do you like her enough?

Ancan – Jake Hannam (to Everyone): 8:10 PM: Merry Christmas!!!!

Frank Fabish (to Everyone): 8:10 PM: Merry Christmas to all.

David Muslin (to Everyone): 8:11 PM: Good Luck Frank with your appt tmrw

Tracy Saville (to Everyone): 8:11 PM: Happy Holidays to everyone. Your support means alot.

Frank Fabish (to Everyone): 8:11 PM: TY David

“The Language of Cancer” doesn’t change much!

“The Language of Cancer” doesn’t change much!

Almost 18 months ago, AnCan was honored to host a fascinating, thought provoking webinar titled ‘The Language of Cancer’. To save repetition, click on this link to learn exactly what that means. Essentially we are speaking about how cancer patietns refer to themselves, and how the medical world may employ language that is unintentionally insulting.

By way of example, a doc often say a patient has failed a drug ……. NO, the patient hasn’t failed the drug – the drug has failed the patient!

Just the past week, when we were discussing this very webinar and topic in one of our virtual groups, one of our webinar panelists published a new article on the same old topic in Psychology Today, Prof Jamie Aten is the Founder of the Humanitarian Disaster Institute at Wheaton College, where he also teaches psychology. He has also lived with Stage 4 colon cancer diagnosed 7 years ago, though, thankfully, Jamie is currently NED – No Evidence of Disease.

If you live with cancer or are a caregiver, it’s almost certain you’ll have an opinion on this topic. We welcome your response if you’d like to write your own blogpost!

Special Presentation: A No-nonsense Interactive discussion on AS and Prostate Cancer with a Urologist

Special Presentation: A No-nonsense Interactive discussion on AS and Prostate Cancer with a Urologist

The Active Surveillance path in Prostate Cancer comes with a lot of questions, and that’s why we are always so glad to offer support and resources. On December 2nd, in our AS prostate cancer virtual support group, we had the utmost pleasure of hosting Dr. Judd W. Moul, MD, FACS (Professor of Surgery at Duke University), who happens to be one of the top experts in the field of Prostate Cancer!

 

He shares a wonderful dialogue about AS, and answers many of our attendee’s questions. Our own moderators learned something new. Thank you so much, Dr. Moul!

 

Watch this informative special presentation here:

 

 

For information on our peer-led video chat ACTIVE SURVEILLANCE PROSTATE CANCER VIRTUAL SUPPORT GROUP, click here.

To SIGN UP for the Group or any other of our AnCan Virtual Support groups, visit our Contact Us page.

Special Presentation: A No-nonsense Interactive discussion on AS and Prostate Cancer with a Urologist

Webinar: Active Surveillance and Beyond – Continuing the Conversation on mpMRI with Dr. Antonio Westphalen

After our first and second webinar in our series “Active Surveillance and Beyond”, we had the absolute pleasure of having radiologist Dr. Antonio Westphalen (Head of abdominal imaging at the University of Washington in Seattle.) for our third one.

Dr. Westphalen entitled his program,”The Value of mpMRI in Monitoring Men on Active Surveillance.” He discussed how mpMRI is an important factor in diagnosing and surveilling prostate cancer in active surveillance. But he said other factors need to be taken into account, including PSA testing, digital rectal exams, and genomic testing.

We want to graciously thank Dr. Westphalen for answering our attendee’s questions!

Watch this amazing webinar here:

 

To view the slides from this webinar, click here.

Register for future webinars in our AS Series:

 

For information on our peer-led video chat ACTIVE SURVEILLANCE PROSTATE CANCER VIRTUAL SUPPORT GROUP, click here.

To SIGN UP for the Group or any other of our AnCan Virtual Support groups, visit our Contact Us page.

Peter Kafka on Closure

Peter Kafka on Closure

We have some wonderful thoughts once again from our Board Chair, moderator, and most important, our dear friend Peter Kafka. On the week that we spend reflecting on what we are grateful for, Peter has story that will offer perspective on thankfulness. We are so thankful for YOU, Peter! Aloha.

 

As hospitalizations for Covid-19 surge across the nation and opportunities for visitation at hospitals close down, the subject of “closure” comes up more often. I recently had an experience which brought this matter up in a new light that I thought worth sharing. A week ago, a good friend passed away as a result of recurrent colorectal cancer. He had exhausted all treatment options available to him and was under hospice care at home with his devoted wife of many years providing the major care and support. He remained lucid and at rest until the end.

This couple had a large network of family and friends around N. America and world-wide. One close friend took it upon herself to arrange for a Zoom conference meeting the weekend before the departure. Many of this man’s friends and relatives were present on this Zoom call including his wife who was within ear-shot and sight of her husband who could hear the conversation.

This was something of a transformative event for me and all involved because it gave us opportunity to say goodbye, to tell poignant stories, and reflect on the precious value of our individual friendships with this gentleman in real time while he could still receive our thoughts and wishes. The timing was perfect and there was a good measure of closure for all involved.

Usually our culture dictates that some form of closure be recreated in a ceremony or service after one departs. But these days even this opportunity is limited or non-existent because of the strict rules regarding gatherings and the dangers of travel. I have always thought that thankfulness was and should be primarily an anticipatory act rather than something expressed after the fact. I would suggest that in this holiday season of seeming isolation that we find ways to express THANKS for/ to what IS as well as what was.