Are there ways to lower down the psa level of a person who already undergo an operation?
im askin if there are ways to lower down the psa level after your prostate gland been removed.
Hello,
I am answering this assuming that you – or someone you know – has had their prostate removed because they had prostate cancer, and now the PSA has stayed somewhat elevated or begun to rise. (Please clarify if this is not the case.)
If the PSA begins to rise following a prostatectomy (removal of prostate) and continues to rise, it is a good sign that there is some cancer somewhere. (If the PSA is present but at a steady low level, it is possible that this is not prostate cancer, but a continually rising PSA is a likely cancer persistence/recurrence.
If this occurs, there are three possible considerations for treatment:
1. Watch and wait – while this will NOT bring down the prostate, it is possible in some people that the cancer will never cause any problems. Prostate cancer is usually very slow growing, and so often can be present without requiring treatment. Different clinicians approach this option differently, and while some strongly recommend watching for a while initially, others will strongly recommend immediate treatment as per below.
2. Radiation – if the PSA is still reasonably low or it is soon after surgery, then it may be the case that the residual cancer is still nearby where the prostate is. In this case, it is reasonable to try to radiate the area in hoping of cleaning up the microscopic spots of cancer that are remaining. If all the cancer is near to the prostate, then the PSA will go down following treatment.
3. Hormonal therapy – For patients with spread of prostate cancer beyond the prostate area, (usually to the bones) the best treatment is hormonal therapy. There are many forms of this, but the most commonly used today are either pills or injections every 1-3 months that cause a decrease in testosterone levels. Since prostate cancer usually depends upon testosterone for growth, this will slow the progression of any cancer ANYWHERE in the body, and the PSA will usually drop quite dramatically.
Hopefully this is helpful. Let me know if I’m off-base on my assumption.
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