“Being told you have prostate cancer isn’t the kind of news anyone wants to hear. Fortunately my urologist told me they caught it early, it’s treatable and he recommended radiation therapy, not surgery. He explained my radiation options and recommended the old school route which is 42 daily radiation treatments over 6-to-8 weeks. But after doing research, I preferred CyberKnife radiation therapy, which is only 5 short treatment sessions over 10 days. The choice wasn’t hard. I checked out three cancer centers using CyberKnife to treat prostate cancer and the CyberKnife Center of Miami easily came out on top. The website is just fantastic. It’s so professionally done and I told Dr. Mark Pomper the medical director at CyberKnife Miami that the website cemented my decision. If you look at their website, you already know it’s packed with helpful information, that regular people can understand. The office runs just like the website. It’s organized, friendly and professional. Dr. Pomper has put together a top notch team. The entire staff and operation are the best I’ve ever experienced in Miami. They are just real people, trying to get you through something difficult. A special shout out to Maria Kristina Borgen, the center’s manager and Mario Tobin, the lead radiation therapist. They were patient, kind and really knew their stuff. They walked me through every step and actually took the time to explain things. Their confidence spilled over to me more than they realized. Their knowledge made me confident in the success of the treatment. They’re great to work with, the best people skills, you never feel rushed. I would like to add how efficient they are. They made everything so convienent. There’s no waiting around for your treatments. When you arrived, Dr. Pomper saw you within 3-to-5 minutes and then directly to the CyberKnife treatment room. Plus they took my insurance and worked with me to reduce my co-pay.”
When diagnosed at 77 years young, Dave, a certified arborist had a Gleason score of 7, his PSA was 11.3, and the disease was considered stage 2, (or T2) which in prostate cancer signifies a localized tumor that is confined within the prostate gland but is large enough to be felt during a digital rectal exam (DRE) or seen on imaging. It indicates the cancer has not spread outside the prostate capsule, though it is more advanced than T1.
Dr. Pomper, who is a board certified radiation oncologist says, “Dave is an excellent candidate for CyberKnife because the disease was caught early and it’s localized. It’s ideal for patients who want a shorter, non-invasive alternative to conventional radiation or surgery, and for those who want to minimize the risk of long-term urinary and sexual side effects.”
Dave says, “The treatments were easy, no pain, or immediate side effects. I’d go into the cancer center every other day at 8:00 in the morning and they set you up on the CyberKnife table. I’d just lay there and relax, close my eyes and listen to the very tasteful spa music while the robot did its work. Those 45 minutes were actually very restful. Right afterwards, I didn’t have any fatigue and I was off to the gym. The only side effect I had after the 5 treatments is, when nature called, it was heads up, you had one to two minutes to find a bush.” (He laughs) “That lasted about three weeks. Dr. Pomper told me to take an over the counter medication and that solved that. It’s been fantastic, and the best part is the results.”
He adds, “I asked Mario how will I know if this works? He said your PSA should drop like a rock, and it did. Before CyberKnife my PSA was 11.3. After CyberKnife, three months later it dropped to 1.3. My urologist was so happy and said that’s what we want to see. We’ll skip this exam and I’ll see you in 6 months.”
“I asked Mario if I’m cured and he said, we don’t say cured, we say you’re in remission.”
“If you’re on the fence, or confused about what cancer center to go with, and you are a candidate for CyberKnife treatment, I can tell you this, these folks at CyberKnife Miami know what they’re doing, and they really treat you right. I’m grateful I found them. Fortunately I’ve had good health all my life until now, but a lot of guys in my social circle have this same issue, so I tell them my CyberKnife story. I feel like I won the lottery.”