A Brush with Cancer
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I am sharing this story with the team to spread awareness about the importance of men performing self-exams and taking action if we find something.
Here we go…
Over the past 2 months I have been diagnosed, treated for and successfully beat, testicular cancer.
It all started back in February when I discovered a lump on my right testicle. I went to my family doctor to have it looked at. He put me on some antibiotics, which reduced the size of the lump, but didn't eliminate it entirely. At that point my doctor requested an ultrasound be performed and referred me to a urologist.
The urologist presented the results of the ultrasound to me. The ultrasound revealed "levels that may be consistent with testicular cancer". He ordered a second ultrasound and some blood tests.
The blood tests came up negative, no indication of cancer. But the second ultrasound confirmed what the first one concluded: looks like testicular cancer.
In other types of suspected cancers, a tissue sample of the tumor can be taken and analyzed. Unfortunately that is not possible in my case because if indeed the tumor is cancerous, there is a high risk of cancer cells spreading elsewhere in my body when the sample is taken.
So, I was scheduled for an operation on March 18 to have my right testicle removed. Fancy shmancy medical term is “Radical Orchiectomy”. It was a simple day surgery, about an hour in length.
A CT scan was also performed, scanning everything from the neck down looking for cancer.
Once the testicle was removed, it was sent to a lab for two weeks of analysis. After a long two weeks of waiting, the test results would become available and I would learn exactly what I was facing.
Worst case scenario: the lump was cancerous, it had spread to other areas of my body, and I'd be facing months of intensive radiation and chemotherapy.
Best case scenario: the lump was not cancerous and no further treatment needed.
Most likely scenario: somewhere between those two extremes.
I had three big factors working in my favour:
1) I took action very soon after finding the lump.
2) I live a healthy lifestyle and am in good physical condition.
3) Testicular cancer is cured successfully 95-99% of the time.
So, March 18, Operation Day. The operation went very well. To quote the medical staff, it was “textbook”. That’s what I like to hear!
They also had me on a wonderful blend of drugs that lasted many hours post-operation. The drugs were so good I was able to personally make several phone calls to family telling them I was okay. I got a lot of “Wow Brent, you sound good!” to which I replied “Yeah I know eh?”. Then later that afternoon, the drugs started to wear off and I was out like a light for several hours…
The two weeks of waiting post-surgery were two of the longest weeks of my life. It was a weird feeling knowing I was about to receive news in 13, 12, 11… days that could totally alter the trajectory of my life.
Fast forward two weeks…
1a) Biopsy on the tumour confirmed it was testicular cancer = bad, but good now that it’s out.
1b) Holy shit there was cancer in my body
2) CT scan showed zero cancer spread elsewhere in my body = good!
3) Blood tests showed no markers indicating cancer = good!
Remaining issue: there is a very small chance there are still microscopic cancerous cells in my body that not even a CT scan can detect.
Two options going forward
1) “Active surveillance”: regular checkups/CT scans every 4-6 months for the rest of my life
2) Radiation therapy: zap even the smallest cancerous cells
Lots of pros & cons to both options. Ottawa Cancer Centre filled me in on all the details. I won’t go into all the details here.
Bottom line: I decided to go with option 1, Active Surveillance. This leaves me with an 85% chance of not having a reoccurrence of cancer and even if there is a reoccurrence, it will be detected and treated quickly. None of the side effects of radiation.
Because only one testicle was removed, things like testosterone levels, libido and muscle mass are unaffected. There is a very small risk I will have difficultly producing enough sperm when my wife and I decide to have kids. To protect against that risk I have made a donation at a fertility clinic.
Due to the major surgery I was unable to do any intense exercise or heavy lifting for an entire month. I have been working with CoachP to slowly ease myself back into my normal routine. I’ve actually surprised myself by how quickly my body is bouncing back. I can tell I have lost a little bit of power/pace, but the endurance and overall recoverability is still there.
A few huge thank you’s are in order:
1) My incredible wife: fearlessly in my corner the whole time. Picked up the slack on the chores I normally do around the house. Remained amazingly positive and patient.
2) Ottawa Sleeper Cell: overwhelming amount of positive mojo
3) CoachP: helped me reset expectations for the year and put together a great plan to get me back into my routine
I could go on and on but this post is already way too long…
Beating cancer is a TEAM EFFORT.
In summary, I cannot stress enough the importance of the occasional self-exam and DOING something about it if necessary. To quote Ice Cube: “You better check yo self before you wreck yo self”.
Gentlemen: if you find something, DO SOMETHING.
Here we go…
Over the past 2 months I have been diagnosed, treated for and successfully beat, testicular cancer.
It all started back in February when I discovered a lump on my right testicle. I went to my family doctor to have it looked at. He put me on some antibiotics, which reduced the size of the lump, but didn't eliminate it entirely. At that point my doctor requested an ultrasound be performed and referred me to a urologist.
The urologist presented the results of the ultrasound to me. The ultrasound revealed "levels that may be consistent with testicular cancer". He ordered a second ultrasound and some blood tests.
The blood tests came up negative, no indication of cancer. But the second ultrasound confirmed what the first one concluded: looks like testicular cancer.
In other types of suspected cancers, a tissue sample of the tumor can be taken and analyzed. Unfortunately that is not possible in my case because if indeed the tumor is cancerous, there is a high risk of cancer cells spreading elsewhere in my body when the sample is taken.
So, I was scheduled for an operation on March 18 to have my right testicle removed. Fancy shmancy medical term is “Radical Orchiectomy”. It was a simple day surgery, about an hour in length.
A CT scan was also performed, scanning everything from the neck down looking for cancer.
Once the testicle was removed, it was sent to a lab for two weeks of analysis. After a long two weeks of waiting, the test results would become available and I would learn exactly what I was facing.
Worst case scenario: the lump was cancerous, it had spread to other areas of my body, and I'd be facing months of intensive radiation and chemotherapy.
Best case scenario: the lump was not cancerous and no further treatment needed.
Most likely scenario: somewhere between those two extremes.
I had three big factors working in my favour:
1) I took action very soon after finding the lump.
2) I live a healthy lifestyle and am in good physical condition.
3) Testicular cancer is cured successfully 95-99% of the time.
So, March 18, Operation Day. The operation went very well. To quote the medical staff, it was “textbook”. That’s what I like to hear!
They also had me on a wonderful blend of drugs that lasted many hours post-operation. The drugs were so good I was able to personally make several phone calls to family telling them I was okay. I got a lot of “Wow Brent, you sound good!” to which I replied “Yeah I know eh?”. Then later that afternoon, the drugs started to wear off and I was out like a light for several hours…
The two weeks of waiting post-surgery were two of the longest weeks of my life. It was a weird feeling knowing I was about to receive news in 13, 12, 11… days that could totally alter the trajectory of my life.
Fast forward two weeks…
1a) Biopsy on the tumour confirmed it was testicular cancer = bad, but good now that it’s out.
1b) Holy shit there was cancer in my body
2) CT scan showed zero cancer spread elsewhere in my body = good!
3) Blood tests showed no markers indicating cancer = good!
Remaining issue: there is a very small chance there are still microscopic cancerous cells in my body that not even a CT scan can detect.
Two options going forward
1) “Active surveillance”: regular checkups/CT scans every 4-6 months for the rest of my life
2) Radiation therapy: zap even the smallest cancerous cells
Lots of pros & cons to both options. Ottawa Cancer Centre filled me in on all the details. I won’t go into all the details here.
Bottom line: I decided to go with option 1, Active Surveillance. This leaves me with an 85% chance of not having a reoccurrence of cancer and even if there is a reoccurrence, it will be detected and treated quickly. None of the side effects of radiation.
Because only one testicle was removed, things like testosterone levels, libido and muscle mass are unaffected. There is a very small risk I will have difficultly producing enough sperm when my wife and I decide to have kids. To protect against that risk I have made a donation at a fertility clinic.
Due to the major surgery I was unable to do any intense exercise or heavy lifting for an entire month. I have been working with CoachP to slowly ease myself back into my normal routine. I’ve actually surprised myself by how quickly my body is bouncing back. I can tell I have lost a little bit of power/pace, but the endurance and overall recoverability is still there.
A few huge thank you’s are in order:
1) My incredible wife: fearlessly in my corner the whole time. Picked up the slack on the chores I normally do around the house. Remained amazingly positive and patient.
2) Ottawa Sleeper Cell: overwhelming amount of positive mojo
3) CoachP: helped me reset expectations for the year and put together a great plan to get me back into my routine
I could go on and on but this post is already way too long…
Beating cancer is a TEAM EFFORT.
In summary, I cannot stress enough the importance of the occasional self-exam and DOING something about it if necessary. To quote Ice Cube: “You better check yo self before you wreck yo self”.
Gentlemen: if you find something, DO SOMETHING.
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Comments
thanks for sharing. good points.
Brent, congratulations and thank you for sharing this personal story. I am a urologist (actually a pediatric urologist, so I rarely treat testis cancer any more), but have done the operation you had and the big one you are probably never going to need. Sounds like you were/are well informed, in good hands, and have handled this very well.
I second Brent's advice....men....check yourself once a month. I tell my older patients (teenagers) to check themselves in the shower on the first day of every month. Any painless, hard lump or new nodule and you need to go see your doc immediately. As Brett mentioned, testis cancer is usually curable, but if you catch it early as in this example, you can often be cured with just a "minor" hernia incision and removal of the testicle. As long as you have another one, you should be OK for fertility and hormonal problems are even more rare.
Testis cancer affects YOUNG men, not usually older men (the only cancer for which this is true). Young men tend to think that they are "superman" and blow things off. Almost every patient I have treated for testis cancer has a huge mass by the time they present, which has always baffled me. By then, it is usually metastatic and they are now going to have to undergo chemotherapy and/or radiation and possibly other major surgeries to remove metastatic disease. How LA waited so long given that he wore spandex for a living is beyond me!
Thanks again Brent....hope all your follow-up scans and bloodwork remains clean.
Wow Brent"Stoneface" Eritou thumb's up on baring your medical soul to EN and educating the readers out there. I am in awe how you have taken an analytical view with your personal case and presented it in such a way to educate the masses for all of us to ponder ! As your friend and training partner I am in awe at your "down to earth attitude" life curve ball that you have been dealt. Great to see and hear all the positives going forward. The Ottawa Sleeper Cell personally applauds your mettle !! Clap Clap Clap,Bravo Zulu
Your message really puts things in perspective and it's a reminder how quickly life can change on you! Really glad to hear your CT came back negative. Don't sweat any lost fitness. Let your body recover and you'll be back soon enough.
@Jeff I like that advice: check once a month. As crazy as it sounds, a recurring calendar reminder would get the job done.
As cyclists we have an advantage due to spending so much time in bike shorts and have an intimate knowledge of the "saddle area".
And now to lighten the mood a little...