Another PSA test ...

My quarterly PSA rise this time is twice the average of the last three years of measurable results.  It’s doubled in three months and a few days. Well, one single PSA is not a reliable guide, but it’s perhaps a good thing that when we arrived here we sought an appointment with a local specialist. That comes up this week.

I don’t imagine that there’s been a break-through in treatment of advanced prostate cancer. We have no unrealistic views about my prospects. Indeed, a dozen years ago we never imagined I might make it to my eightieth year. But it will be good to sit down with an expert again and discuss the realities of our situation in the light of this test.

More and more it is becoming apparent that we have made the right move in leaving our home of 23 years in Paihia. For all the jokes about my attempting to tunnel under the wire to “escape the Gulag”, we are enjoying the comfort and convenience of the smaller home. We got sneaky satisfaction yesterday from watching one team clean our outside windows and another mowing the extensive lawns around our place. Although we’ve been away touring the country for more than half the time since we left Paihia we’re appreciating opportunities to meet new friends. We’re getting involved in some interesting activities and can cheerfully steer clear of some that definitely don’t appeal.

Above all, we are so grateful to have family dropping in from time to time.