Be Informed About Prostate Cancer and the PSA Test

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Musings from 20th Street

Since the US Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) officially recommended, in 2012, against routine-specific antigen (PSA), the screening procedure plummeted. Now, they are reversing their recommendation to ditch the test.
It all started with a research study published in the New England Journal of Medicine in 2009 that showed no difference in mortality rates between men who received PSA screening and those who didn’t.
Researchers have reanalyzed the data, and discovered that there is a problem with the prior conclusion. If you are a stat-nut, and want to know the exact nature of the problem, Fred Pescatore (my daughter’s personal physician) outlines the statistical error in a recent issue of Reality Health Check. Suffice it to say that both conclusions by the USPSTF – whether to have or not have – have problematic issues.
According to many clinicans, the PSA test is unwarranted at best, and dangerous at worse since it can begin a cascade of medical procedures that are unnecessary and harmful. A high PSA test can occur when you have finished a long bike ride, or just come from a hot yoga class; or have inflammation that is unrelated to cancer (and should be addressed in ways significantly different from the ways cancer should be addressed); or that you have recently ejaculated; or that you recently had a prostate or bladder exam that involved a scope or biopsy; or that you have benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH), which is an enlargement of the prostate that is not prostate cancer; or that you have a urinary tract infection; or merely that you are getting older, as PSA does tend to rise with age. 
Peter Starr
The founder and director of the Healing Arts Education Foundation, Peter Starr, wrote an important article that was published on Mercola’s website about prostate cancer and the process of getting tested to see if you have it.
Peter, a personal friend, is an expert in this area – something reflected by the success of his film, “Surviving Prostate Cancer,” which has been seen on many public television stations around the country. His important article is reproduced in full below.

Be Informed About Prostate Cancer

and the PSA Test

Through my eleven years of study and more recently the 3 years it took to produce the documentary “Surviving Prostate Cancer without Surgery, Drugs or Radiation,” one issue repeatedly reared itself – why are men routinely screened en-masse for their PSA score, when the data clearly indicates that it results in a huge excess of radical invasive treatments, most of which, up to 85% according to some studies, are unnecessary.
If you are a man aged 50+ then I am sure you are familiar with the PSA screening. More than that, I am sure you are aware of being bombarded with promotions encouraging you to get your PSA tested, sometimes free-of-charge. Whole parades and motorcycle rides are organized to drive you to get tested, like it’s a simple procedure with no negative implications. Simple it is, but one thing is for sure, you are not told the entire truth about the prostate cancer “industry” and the large part played in it by you getting a regular PSA test.
First, let me say that the PSA test in itself is not the problem; it is what is done with that information following the test. Let me walk you through the chronology of likely events before giving you some statistics that you should be aware of, and which at least for me, is a cause for consideration – if not alarm – if your PSA shows a higher number than what is considered normal.
Let’s take a 60-year-old male that is convinced by his primary care physician to take the test and the number comes back as an eight (normal for a man of that age is considered to be less than 4, although that in itself is an arbitrary number). The physician will then likely send you to a urologist for a biopsy. With a 60-year-old (or older), the biopsy will likely show some cancer. According to mortality data, 46% of all men in the USA between the ages of 50 and 59 have prostate cancer. The rate increases significantly as men age.
At this point, the urologist will likely recommend immediate surgery – after all, most urologists are surgeons. 70% of men who choose surgery do so within 48 hours of the diagnosis – a very significant statistic since one is highly unlikely to die of prostate cancer in the immediate future, and the potential for a life of impotence and incontinence post-surgery is considerable.
So you can see the unquestionable connection between a simple routine PSA test and the potential of a life without your prostate, but with significant and real life challenges to remember it by. To quote Richard Ablin Ph.D, the man who discovered the Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA) molecule, “I never dreamed that my discovery four decades ago would lead to such a profit-driven public health disaster.” 
Dr. Thomas Stamey M.D. an early proponent of PSA screening (published in the Journal of Urology back in 2004) says: “The PSA era is over in the USA. Our study raises a very serious question of whether a man should even use the PSA test for prostate cancer screening anymore.”
If you have a PSA test and find the number is elevated, think before you take the next step. Retest, have your doctor conduct a PCA3 and a 4K score (there are other exams such as a 3D color Doppler Ultrasound) before jumping into the “sheep dip” of treatment protocols that the majority of men who are left impotent and incontinent, live to regret.

La Casa Puerto Rico is Reopening!

Back in July, I mentioned in Musings that I recently reconnected with a long-lost friend named Rose. She had been a regular guest at my La Casa Spa & Wellness Center in Puerto Rico during the 1990s. Unfortunately, the gorgeous resort was forced to close after hurricanes caused extensive damage to the property. The good news is, we are currently working on renovating the resort and it will be back to its former glory and open to the public again shortly.  

Running into Rose – now aged 84 and still looking and feeling fabulous – prompted me to dig back through photo albums that captured all of La Casa Puerto Rico’s idyllic spaces. So, as we prep for the reopening, here’s a look back at how La Casa Puerto Rico looked in the late 1980s and early ’90s. All photos were taken on a 35-millimeter camera – old school style! 

 

What better place to get a massage? The view is the ocean in one direction and the peaks of El Yunque in the other.

Outdoor exercise.

The mud for the resort’s mud baths comes from the top of El Yunque. Rich in nutrients, it’s the best detox on Earth.

Spectacular swimming spaces.

That’s Adam, a repeat guest who came down every year for five years running. Rock ciimbing is my now-grown-up dughter Molly’s favorite activity. In NY, she’s relegated to the indoor Chelsea Piers, but she got her first taste of the majesty of the boulders in Puerto Rico, where she spent much time as a child. I can’t wait for her to come back down once we re-open, to indulge her rock-climbing passion.

Rose and I in 1992. Go back to the the previous Musings to see a video of Rose today talking about aging. She has joined the MakeItTo120Club.

We’re all pooped here. That’s me in the foreground. Brits Russell and Liz plopped down on the left, and New Yorker Niki on right. The little one is my Molly – now 23 – and not just cute (as she is here) but gorgeous and smart too. Having graduated from college recently, she is currently following in the footsteps of her mom (me) and beginning training to become a psychoanalyst at the Center for Modern Psychoanalytic Studies.

Luquillo Beach – always calm for good long-distance swimming. It has a barrier reef that captures the waves before they come to shore. One of my favorite beaches in the world.

Stunning sunsets.

We even hosted weddings!

Our neighbor up the hill is a goat farmer. She’s the one talking about the ugliest lemon on earth (see the margin). When we re-open, we will have all the fresh raw goat milk, goat cheese, goat yogurt, goat cream and goat dairy ice cream that we desire. The fresh raw goat ice cream (no sugar) is not-to-be-believed delicious.

There are banana trees throughout the property – it is a farm, after all!

Fiddlehead fern for lunch anyone? One alone might fill you up, they’re so big there. Also abundant year-round, throughout the property.

The glorious red gingers that line the entrance to La Casa.

We’ll be sure to let you know as soon as

we have a date to re-open!

Respectfully submitted by:
owner of
*Licensed Psychologist
*Certified  Psychoanalyst
*Author and Blogger
*Stone Carrier Medicine Woman, Native American Traditional Organization

Jane’s eighth book,

My Mother,

My Daughter,

My Self,

is coming soon through Free Association Books. It will be available on Amazon at the end of October. For eager beavers, you can pre-order by emailing: 

orders@nbninternational.com

Here’s what people are saying about it:

“Once again, Jane Goldberg has created a tour de force, a stunningly smart body of work that should be required reading for all mothers and all daughters. With sensitivity, compassion and humility, she traces the inevitable steps of the separation process between mothers and daughters. The stories themselves—sometimes about herself and her own mother, sometimes about herself and her daughter, and, too, about her patients—are riveting and illuminating. All is surrounded by sound and documented research and theory. Hats off to Jane Goldberg for her accomplishment in this magnificent book.”

Mimi G. Crowell, Ph.D., President, Center for Modern Psychoanalytic Studies.

We’ve talked about the benefits of La Casa‘s Floatation therapy re-peatedly in the history of Musings. Now a new article featured on The Truth About Cancer website, explains the multiple benefits of epsom salts.

Given the fact that floatation is the immersion of the body in 800 pounds of epsom salts, it is yet more evidence to support the importance of floatation as a treatment.

You can read TTAC’s article by clicking:

HERE

You can also read what our own research says about the benefits of floatation on La Casa‘s website – the detoxification aspect of floating is said to be equivalent to a three-day fast. In addition, the rejuvenative effect on the brain is shown to be equivalent to five hours of sleep!

The membership of our very own 120 Club keeps growing week by week!

 

To meet our members and hear their thoughts on wellness, aging, longevity and living to 120 years old, click:
HERE

According to a 1930 New York Times article, Wu Chung-chieh, a professor of the Chengdu University, discovered Imperial Chinese government records from 1827 congratulating Li Ching-Yuen on his 150th birthday, and further documents later congratulating him on his 200th birthday in 1877. In 1928, a New York Times correspondent wrote that many of the old men in Li’s neighborhood asserted that their grandfathers knew him when they were boys, and that he at that time was a grown man. 
Li was asked what his secret was to longevity. This was his reply: “Keep a quiet heart, sit like a tortoise, walk sprightly like a pigeon and sleep like a dog.” 
See more, by clicking

Another great review from a satisfied La Casa customer:
“La Casa, is calming and inviting. The colonic went great! I felt amazing afterward and cannot thank La Casa Spa for creating such an amazing experience for me. I would highly recommend taking a day to cleanse and detox your body. Its well worth the time and money.”
Kristin C.

Tell me animals aren’t people!
(Click the image below to see this amazing video.)


The Ugliest Lemons

on Earth!

A special dispatch from La Casa, Puerto Rico, about the joy of Limón de cabra! This is Tyler, the goat farmer up the road from us.

To watch the full video, click the image, or 

HERE

You can see all of Jane’s latest contributions to Huffington Post, by clicking

HERE

In 2009, Jane recorded a series of group therapy sessions on cable netowrk, MNN, that came to be titled The Really Real Reality Group Therapy TV Show. The series has proved to be enduringly popular on YouTube, thanks to the multitude of psychoanalytical and psychological issues it explored related to love, hate, narcissism and sharing thoughts and feelings with others. You can check out the full series

HERE

Introducing our latest promotion – Midweek Specials! Join us at La Casa Spa & Wellness Center Monday-Thursday for enticing deals on our self-healing services. Book any three self-healing services for just $69 (save up to $211!)

La Casa Spa and Wellness Center was created out of the experience one woman had with her mother. Long before holistic medicine became widely known, Dr. Jane Goldberg spent the 1970s seeking alternative cancer therapies for her mother, who had been diagnosed with terminal bone cancer. Following sound principles of holistic health, Jane’s mother was able to reverse her cancer condition entirely, moving from her wheelchair to joyfully playing tennis again. This experience inspired Jane to specialize in her psychoanalytic practice to work with cancer patients, and to fulfill the need for a holistic healing center in NYC. Jane and La Casa invite you to partake of the restorative and profoundly cleansing therapies that have brought La Casa world-wide recognition.

Legal Disclaimer
Information provided is for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice. No health claims for these products or therapies have been evaluated by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA), nor has the FDA nor any other medical authority approved these products pr therapies to diagnose, cure, or prevent disease. Since every person is unique, we highly recommend you to consult with your licensed health care practitioner about the use of products or therapies discussed here as it relates to your particular situation.

Think of your body as part of the earth,
Think of the earth as part of your soul
La Casa Spa
41 East 20th Street,
New York, NY. 10003
212-673-2272