My Challenge to defeat prostate and bone cancer

First Published 30 September 2023

Well, here I am again. Another blog about cancer but this time it’s me! It is more than 11.5 years since I added the final chapters to the “Wendy’s Army” blog, so this is very much Déjà Vu. I don’t know what I have done to upset those “upstairs” but they sure are making sure I get tested in this life. They managed to take Wendy, sadly, but they are not going to get me without the same degree of fight and determination shown by her.

As Wendy would be the first to acknowledge, these journeys cannot be undertaken alone. No cancer patient can undertake the trip without the support of loved ones.

As many will know, Kim and I being together at this stage in our lives is a story, which goes back over 30 years. Maybe we will tell that story at some point. So many have said we should!

I want to start this blog by acknowledging Kim, who is as up for the challenge of beating this cancer as I am. I simply could not do this without the caring nature of Kim, her inspiration to support me and lead the effort to get through this and we cannot wait for the day we will be told I’m in complete remission.

Kim is my rock! She is right here with me, and I couldn’t be a luckier man to be facing this with her. I love her with all my heart and, together, we are going to be successful in fighting and defeating this disease!

Before I start to tell the story and start the journey, let me explain why I have created this blog. There are three main reasons:

  1. Firstly, and most importantly, the majority of my family, my friends and my former colleagues are now aware of my diagnosis. Naturally, they all wish to be kept informed about my ongoing treatment and, rather than constantly tell people individually, it makes sense to keep everybody that wishes to be kept up to date informed on a consistent basis. When recounting detail, it is very easy to forget what you have said and to whom.
  2. I find it very cathartic. Telling the story gives me the chance to reflect on what is happening, rather than just repeating facts about the treatment and, just as importantly, some of those reading the blog will have people they know that have been on the same, or a similar journey. I think sharing experiences is so valuable and I have already found others that have been able to provide valuable insights and connections, which I will cover later.
  3. Thirdly, I’m not the only one undertaking this type of cancer journey. I have already met other men who have experienced prostate cancer and there will be many more in the future. My experience may just help other guys on their own journey. In Australia, over 24,000 men are diagnosed with prostate cancer each year, with 1 in 5 men at risk of being diagnosed before they turn 85. And it is far from being confined to Australia. In the UK, Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men. More than 52,000 men are diagnosed with prostate cancer every year on average – that’s 144 men every day. Every 45 minutes one man dies from prostate cancer – that’s more than 12,000 men every year.

  • Session 2 of chemo – update

    I have been feeling really good! I had my bloods checked on 10 October, the day before I was due to have my second session of chemo the following day. My white blood cell count had recovered sufficiently from the normal dip following the first chemo session. My day 10 bloods following session one were

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  • My best week since I started my treatment regime!

    Since my last update: The meeting with Bill, the cancer nurse at Milton & Ulladulla Cancer Centre went well. I had had my bloods taken immediately before the meeting, so Bill did not have these available. However, he had seen the ones taken on day 10 (19 October) after the second chemo session on 11

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  • Chemo Session 4 update – news is getting better and better

    I had my pre chemo bloods taken on Tuesday 21 November. I had my fourth chemo session on Wednesday morning 22 November. The nursing team confirmed they had the blood results through and everything was looking good. They had obviously read Dr Gary Tinckner’s note from my review meeting with him on Friday 17 November

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  • 5th session of chemo & update on our home

    The last three weeks, since the 4th chemo session, have been quite quiet on the health front, thankfully. My stomach has been a little less tolerant of the chemo, as expected. I’ve taken around 6-8 imodium to help, whereas I had previously only had to take a couple. The cancer nurse, when I discussed it

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  • Final Chemo Session, I hope!

    On Wednesday 3 January I had my sixth, and optimistically my last, chemo session. My bloods, taken the day before, were all normal and the session proceeded exactly as previous ones, no issues. That night, however, I could not sleep at all. The phrase often used by the cancer team is “wired”. I could not

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  • The best possible news I could have wished for!

    Earlier today I had my scheduled appointments with Gary Tincknell, Medical Oncologist, and Stephen Chin Radiology Oncologist. I met Gary first and he had the blood results taken last Friday, 9 February which, sadly coincided with the 12th anniversary of Wendy’s passing. I could tell from his smile that the news was good! When measured

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  • Continued good news and health

    It has now been just over 4 months since my last chemo session. It was suggested to me that it can take from six to 12 months for the chemicals to fully leave my system. From my perspective I feel this will be nearer the shorter end of that timeframe. I have been feeling really

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  • The good news continues!

    I had a telephone meeting with my medical oncologist, Gary Tinknell, on Tuesday last week. He remains very pleased with my progress. He had my blood results from late the previous week. They showed that my PSA remains at 0.01 and told me there are three levels within that score and I had dropped two,

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  • An early Xmas present!

    Having had my bloods taken last Friday, Kim and I visited my oncologist, Dr Gary Tinknell, this morning. My PSA score remains at 0.01, the lowest it can possibly be. He and we were delighted with the continued good news. It is not just the medication that is sustaining this momentum, but the holistic approach

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  • Quick update

    I have had a call with Gary Tincknell, my oncologist, following my latest set of blood tests. He said “cancer in your prostate is “undetectable”, which means the PSA score remains at 0.01 for the fourth consecutive quarter. There is no need to amend my medications, just keep doing what I have been. He will

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Space

The last three weeks, since the 4th chemo session, have been quite quiet on the health front, thankfully. My stomach has been a little less tolerant of the chemo, as expected. I’ve taken around 6-8 imodium to help, whereas I had previously only had to take a couple. The cancer nurse, when I discussed it with him, said this was to be expected and that I should anticipate increased issues before things improve again once the chemo is finished around the end of January.

I had chemo session 5 on Wednesday 13th, which went well. I had my bloods taken the previous day and the nurse said, “your bloods are better than mine”! I was delighted that all the key markers are great. I didn’t get a PSA score this time.

Next steps:

  1. Pre chemo bloods to be taken on Tuesday 2 January
  2. 6th and final, hopefully, chemo session on Wednesday 3 January.
  3. Appointment with Dr Stephen Chin, radiology oncologist, on Friday 2 February. This meeting will determine whether I need follow up radiotherapy treatment on my prostate and bone cancers. With my PSA down to 0.09 and with no pain in my bones, since the treatment started, I’m hopeful no radiotherapy will be required.
  4. Bloods to be taken on Friday 9 February ahead of a meeting with Dr Gary Tinknell, medical oncologist, on Tuesday 13 February, when he will review the outcome of the chemotherapy and hormone treatments and determine next steps.

Our Home

You may recall that, due to the anticipated side effects of my treatment, Kim and I decided that looking after three horses and a 10-acre property was going to be too much for us to cope with.

As previously mentioned, the horses were rehomed, and we placed our home on the market.

As we now know, the side effects have been minimal, and I have coped so much better than anticipated. As it has transpired, the increase in interest rates has had a dampening effect on the housing market, which I know is not unique to Australia. We had not one viewing in the three months it has been on the market, despite several “expressions of interest”.

So, we have taken the decision to take it off the market and stay here for the foreseeable future – a decision we are absolutely delighted with. We have spent a lot of time, effort and money getting the property as we wanted it and if we don’t need to move, why would we?

We couldn’t be happier that we can continue to enjoy our home, hopefully for many years to come.

As this will be the last update before Xmas, Kim & I would like to wish everybody a great festive holiday and a happy & healthy 2024. We are certainly happy to leave 2023 behind us!