The Lighter Side of Hormone Therapy and Some Serious Talk

JOY SCALE: 9/10

Hi Everyone, Every three months I go to the VA hospital and a kindly nurse sprays an area on the lower left side of my abdomen with freeze spray. While the area remains cold she takes a needle the size of a pencil eraser and injects it into my belly and releases the hormone implant. It really doesn't hurt. Now I know what a dog goes through when the veterinarian puts in a chip. The difference is the dog's chip goes into the fleshy part of his shoulder . Ok, let's get back to the hormone implant. It's sole purpose is to stop testosterone production. Remember that testosterone feeds prostate cancer. Just like any drug there are side effects. There is always a trade off. I think that being alive is well worth the side effects. Let's just say that without testosterone my feminine side comes out. Now I love to go shopping-I actually can outshop my wife! I cry for no reason. I change my mind frequently. And here is the best one. I am developing gynecomastia. Boobs! Man boobs! Help me Jesus. I didn't sign up for that change. You can bet that this summer you won't catch me without a shirt unless I am at home and no one is around. The worse thing about growing my little friends is that they are sore as heck. I always knew women were the superior to men in many ways. I am even more convinced every time I bump my new found boobs. I now have an idea of what girls experience during puberty and just before their periods. I have trouble playing my guitar. When I holding my guitar to play it hits my little buddies and I have to hold my guitar out from my body. I am sure most of you guys are laughing right now and you women are smiling in understanding. Maybe many of you think I am crazy for revealing such a private side effect, but I think that if one decides to share his life with cancer then it has to be all or none regardless of how sensitive, or embarassing, some of it is. My wife has great fun at my expense, but I don't mind because I know she is having fun for fun's sake. She is thinking of developing a line of Man Bras. They will have trucks, tools, camo, and other manly objects imprinted on them. If any of you out there have any other ideas please leave them in your comments or email me.
It's time to pop the old balloon and get serious. Along with the the total cessation of testosterone production comes another side effect, impotence. That is a tough side effect to deal with, but being alive is more important. Like most problems in life you adjust to it. I am very lucky because in our marriage our love has transcended beyond the physical and into the spiritual. Are we lucky or what? That's it for the side effects of the hormone treatment. If there are any more side effects I will let you know.
There are two treatments available if you have prostate cancer and it has spread to your bones and/or organs. Hormone therapy, which I covered above, and an Orchiectomy. An Orchiectomy is castration plain and simple. Ouch! The second treatment is the hormone therapy. In some cases the hormone treatment can last 10 years or more: however sometimes the prostate cancer can learn to grow without testosterone. Since my cancer has spread to my bones I had these two choices. As you read at the beginning of this post I chose the hormone therapy which is a chemical neutering. If you have prostate cancer and the cancer has remained in the prostate gland there are several methods of treatment. There is gland removal, radiation, radioactive seeds are placed in the gland, and usually a year of hormone therapy-the same as what I am on. I know I have repeated a few things here and on other posts, but I feel that they bear repeating.
With that I wish you all a good Memorial Day.

Peace and Love to All