Hi, I'm trying to make head and tails of what's happening with my father. He is 71 and has been issued with Bicalutamide and Zoladex (I believe after blood results - psa test possibly?). However, he is also going for a nuclear bone scan and a guided prostate biopsy, I assume these two are to judge how far the cancer has spread for staging. He himself seems to be unsure whether he has cancer when he talks to me ("I might have cancer"). There are also other times when he is also starting to say the occassional wrong word without knowing it and not accepting when it's pointed out. This makes understanding appointments times difficult because he will say one day but mean another. For now, I'll assume the confusion may be due to the medications, but I note research shows that men on zoladex are more likely to suffer with dementia, and men over 70 almost certain.
My questions however are
- why wasn't the biopsy done before issuing the bicalutamide and zoladex because my understanding is they were issued very quickly? Could it be an aggressive prostate cancer? Or is this treatment standard to reduce the level of testosterone to slow tumour growth asap as a form of reactive treatment?
- Does him having "hormone therapy" (a term I hate) indicate doctors won't be pursuing chemo / radiation? I've read that hormone therapy is normally after rounds of treatment and is usually a palliative treatment.
- Is the bone scan and guided biospy to narrow down where it is between stage 2 and 4? Does this offer some sort of hope?
- Because of his age, is he likely to realistically be declined radiation treatment / chemo due to NHS funding issues?
Thanks
