Busy busy!

From shorts and tee shirt weather to a mini blizzard overnight!  Ah well it is March and Scotland!  

A Wednesday morning spinning session at the Leisure Centre trying to keep heart, lungs and legs in some semblance of fitness until a bit of sunny biking weather comes along.  Thursday was prep time for the weekend, a trip over to Fort William to help load up the medical kit ready to head down to Newcastleton in the Borders to provide medical cover for a 24 hour xc mountain bike event.  The riders had a four hour period for signing on and what ever training/warming up they wanted to do then kick off at noon.  Our medical base was luxury! A warm chalet with bedding provided, and large room to set out a treatment area, and most important a coffee brewing area, far better than a draughty 'easy-up' tent with no heating!!  The event was relatively quiet for us, quiet is good, means no one gets hurt, the casualty tally at the end of the race was six, only one rider had to be evacuated from the course and that was mostly due to a 'mechanical fault', a broken chain jamming everything up, rider over the bars resulting in a minor leg injury.  The other good point was that the event finished at noon on the Sunday meaning we could get away at a reasonable time to make the five hour journey back.  Next gig, the weekend of the 21st-22nd April, and it's back to Innerleithen.

Back to the cancer saga.  It's almost eight years since my prostatectomy and seven since the radiotherapy but I still have to get a blood test every three months to check the PSA level.  The readings had been pretty stable, around 0.6 with the odd blip up to 1.2.  Then in October of 2009 I was up to 1.9, a year later 2.7 and three month later 4.8, thing were not looking so bright now!!  Raigmore urology department had been monitoring my progress and decided to haul my in for a bone scan to see if any nasty cells had spread into my skeletal system, thankfully I got an all clear on that score, however, my next PSA score was up to 6.7, decidedly not good!!  After further consultations with urology and oncology they explained that the cancer cells thrived on testosterone, therefore I was advised to undergo Androgen Ablation, this would essentially 'kill off' any testosterone and its production leaving me with menopausal like symptoms!!  At least 'orchidectomy' (look it up on Google) is rarely carried out nowadays, eyes water at the thought!!  In the end  I was prescribed a hormonal drug which is injected as a slow release implant every three months.  After two doses my PSA has dramatically plummeted to 0.1 and testosterone is at an equally low level.  The only noticeable side effects are an increased desire to go shopping, but I can't find a decent shoulder bag with a tweed finish or any nice heels in a size ten!!  At least I'm not getting 'hot flushes' or any of the other problems some guys on hormone therapy have to put up with.  What can one say! you've got to have a laugh about things or you'd cry, and "life is too important to be taken seriously" (Oscar Wilde).