Sen. Chris Dodd (D-Conn) Diagnosed With Early-Stage Prostate Cancer

[Hissyspit]

Source: MSNBC

Dodd Diagnosed With Prostate Cancer

By LeAnne Gendreau and Andrew Pergam
NBCConnecticut.com

updated 15 minutes ago

U.S. Senator Chris Dodd has been diagnosed with early-stage prostate cancer, the Hartford Courant is reporting.

The Democratic 65-year-old lawmaker will go through surgery will the Senate is on recess in August, the Courant reports, and he expects to be back at work after a "brief recuperation" at home.

"It's something that's very common among men my age,'' Dodd told the newspaper. "In fact, one in six men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer at some point during their life.''

- snip -

He is scheduled to hold a news conference at his Hartford office at 2 p.m.

Read more: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/32237346/ns/local_news-hartford_ct/

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Up for re-election in 2010.

[redqueen]

1. Glad they caught it early...

hopefully he'll be fine.

He's not running for re-election, is he?

[Wizard777]

8. I'm glad we've provided him with Health Insurance so something can be done about it.

[and-justice-for-all]

13. that is exactly what I was going to say!! +1

[Wizard777]

16. Compassionate minds think alike.

[Thothmes]

15. You pay portion of the cost, he pays the balance.

[hedgehog]

2. Poor guy is going to have a tough time deciding what to do -

I think he is on the hairy edge between aggressive treatment and watchful waiting.

[kimmylavin]

10. At least he has a choice, though.

Aggressive treatment is so often called "experimental."

[hedgehog]

14. The choices are treatment witha proton gun, surgery, various forms

of radiation or just watchful waiting. I'm not certain if there are any drawbacks to the proton gun aside from cost, but the others all involve side effects.

[KakistocracyHater]

17. why not do like they do with breast cancer pre-emptively chop both

off? Maybe it was the clothes that gave him cancer.....that whole formaldehyde in fabrics/perils of Made in China thing....

[Critters2]

18. I lost a cousin to testicular cancer. We were very close-the same age, grew up together, etc.

Late in his illness, he told me that he had been really frustrated with the docs by their unwillingness to consider removing the cancer and the parts of the body where it started. They wanted to jump right to radiation and chemo. He said it was interesting to watch the male doctors' reaction when he'd ask why they couldn't just "cut 'em off". They did ultimately do an "orchiectomy". But they were WAAAY more reluctant to do so than they are in removing cancerous breast tissue.

[KakistocracyHater]

20. I hope the medical community develops a technique to see cancer cells

IN the body without cutting, like a microscope combined with the laprascopy stuff, looking at the tissue's cells, if positive using a laser or heat & kill some healthy tissue all around the cancerous section. Kind of boxing it up, with only dead cells around, the cancer would be jailed, essentially. Sorry about your cousin.

[Critters2]

29. Thanks. I still miss him and he died 20 years ago, when we were 30.

Smartest guy I ever knew--PhD in physical chemistry. We were both in grad school in Boston in our mid 20's. Those were good times.

[customerserviceguy]

23. This isn't the same thing as breast or testicular cancer

The removal of breasts or testicles does not affect sexual functioning or continence, in the case of removal of testicles, testosterone can be given by injection to maintain functioning.

I know that if I had the same diagnosis as Sen. Dodd, I'd rather be dead of it in ten years than to spend the next thirty living in a diaper, without the ability to "function". But, that's my choice, he has his to make.

[unc70]

26. Those are not the only choices today

Recovery takes some time, but not as you describe. The key is a good doctor/team with nerve-sparing surgery.

What you describe were the likely outcomes not all that long ago, but not today.

[customerserviceguy]

28. I know that there have been some tweaks to the surgical options

but they all have significant failure rates. Hopefully, by the time I might need some meaningful options, they'll be done tweaking.

Right now, it's all a crapshoot.

[madaboutharry]

3. Good thing it seems to have been caught early.

The outlook is good when it is discovered in the early stages. I don't see this as a reason to resign.

[Dr.Phool]

4. Good thing he has health insurance.

[gratuitous]

5. Unless his coverage is denied for a pre-existing condition

He did have a prostate before this diagnosis, right?

But you're right; Sen. Dodd is probably not going to have to choose between treating this diagnosis and staying out of bankruptcy.

[mbperrin]

6. Yes, some government provided health insurance!

Why not spread it to 50 million more Americans?

I know, I know.....

[closeupready]

12. +1

n/t

[CONN]

24. At least he has been a strong supporter of the "Public Option"

http://www.opensecrets.org/news/2009/07/democrats-chuck-schumer-and-ch.html

[TrogL]

7. Some doctors feel the cost of the operation outweighs the benefits

(I was listening to a CBC show discussing medical matters.)

..."Cost" specifically meaning the potential for problem relating to the surgery, not the $ - it's all free up here.

If it's an identifiable lump, fine, but some doctors do invasive surgery based upon elevated PSA levels. If you're over 60, all men have elevated PSA levels.

[ecoalex51]

9. Choices

Senator Dodd has many choices,surgery is one,He could take a look at many alternative choices,among them are;raw food therapy, watchful waiting,heat therapy,oxygen/ozone,and alkaline infusion, which also treats many other cancers;http://www.curenaturalicancro.com/

Early cancers give the patient choices other than the conventional route in many cases.

[LeftishBrit]

30. Cancer is NOT a fungus...

please don't link to potentially harmful misinformation.

[unc70]

21. What doctors are these doing surgery based on just PSA? Other than biopsy?

I have seen this repeated on discussion boards, but based on what everything I know, I am unaware of that being the case anywhere.

The obvious exception is to perform the surgery required to obtain a biopsy of the prostate.

BTW "early stage" prostate cancer most likely means that there is no obvious signs of the cancer having spread outside the prostate, no bone, lymph nodes, or such involvement. Unless you think you will likely die of something else within about ten years from a positive biopsy, watchful waiting is a poor plan.

Someone mentioned various diet "treatments". Unfortunately, all the diet options that had looked promising have been now been smacked down hard by longterm studies. Even worse, it seems that folic acid supplements might promote the development of prostate cancers -- unfortunately, flours are now routinely enriched with folic acid to help prevent birth defects.

[Bette Noir]

11. This shouldn't have any effect on his career.

Prostate cancer is usually slow-growing. With treatment, most men die of old age before they become dangerously sick from the cancer.

Best wishes to him, and his family.

[DesertRat]

19. I wish him well!

:kick:

[BlueStater]

22. Prostate cancer runs in my father's side of the family

So I wish him the best.

[mvd]

25. Best wishes..

for his speedy recovery.

[abelenkpe2]

27. You would not believe

the rotten comments this announcement got on some news sites. People were actually cheering for the cancer. Sick sick people in this world. So sad.

I'm glad they caught it early and hope he recovers.