🩺 Newly Diagnosed with Prostate Cancer?
The first days after a prostate cancer diagnosis can bring a flood of information and decisions. Before making treatment decisions, give yourself time to understand the diagnosis, gather the information you need, and learn about the options available.
🧭 Start by Understanding the Diagnosis
Before you begin comparing treatments, make sure you understand what the diagnosis actually says. Ask for copies of the pathology report, PSA results, imaging reports, and other test results. Keep them together so you can refer to them during appointments and share them if you decide to get a second opinion.
Some of the terms you may hear include:
PSA
Gleason score and Grade Group
Cancer stage
Whether cancer appears confined to the prostate
Imaging or additional testing that may be recommended
Not sure what some of these terms mean? The Prostate Cancer Terms page explains common words you may hear during appointments or see in medical reports.
🔎 Consider a Second Opinion
A second opinion can help you better understand the diagnosis and the choices ahead. It doesn't mean you don't trust your current doctor. It gives you another medical perspective before making a treatment decision.
A second opinion may include reviewing the biopsy or pathology, looking at imaging and test results, and talking with another prostate cancer specialist about treatment options.
If possible, consider hearing from specialists in more than one type of treatment before deciding what comes next. A surgeon and a radiation oncologist may approach the same diagnosis from different perspectives.
🔀 Learn About the Treatment Options
Prostate cancer can often be treated in more than one way. The options recommended will depend on the details of the diagnosis, his overall health, and other factors.
Depending on the diagnosis, you may hear about:
Active surveillance
Surgery
Radiation therapy
Hormone therapy (ADT)
Other treatments or combinations of treatments
Ask what each option may mean not only for treating the cancer, but also for daily life. Side effects, recovery time, urinary changes, sexual function, energy, and the possible need for additional treatment are all worth discussing before making a decision.
❓ Write Down Your Questions
It can be hard to remember every question once you're sitting in the doctor's office. Preparing your questions ahead of time can help you make better use of the appointment and keep track of the answers.
📍 Find Specialists and Treatment Centers
You may want to look beyond the doctor or medical center where the diagnosis was made. National prostate cancer organizations and professional directories can help you find specialists, cancer centers, support programs, and other resources in your area.
⏳ Give Yourself Time to Decide
Hearing the word cancer can make everything feel urgent. But a prostate cancer diagnosis doesn't always mean treatment must begin right away. How much time you have depends on the details of the diagnosis, so ask the doctor how soon a decision needs to be made.
Use the time you have to gather information, get another opinion if you want one, talk with the specialists involved, and understand the benefits and possible side effects of each option.
You don't need to make a treatment decision before you understand what you're choosing.
📒 Keep Everything Together
The first weeks after diagnosis can bring reports, appointment notes, questions, test results, and new information from different doctors and appointments.
The Caregiver Binder gives you a simple way to organize the information you collect throughout the prostate cancer journey.
🌻 One Step at a Time
You don't have to understand prostate cancer all at once. Start with the diagnosis in front of you. Write down your questions, gather the medical records, talk with the specialists, and take the time available to understand the choices.
Once a treatment decision has been made, the Caregiver Education Center has resources to help you prepare for what comes next.
📘 Your First 30 Days
If you're trying to figure out what to do first, this free guide can help. It walks you through the first month after a prostate cancer diagnosis and gives you practical information you can use along the way.
Free to download. No registration required.
❤️ A Note from Debra
When my husband was diagnosed with prostate cancer, I remember wondering whether I was asking the right questions or doing the right things. I often felt like I was trying to learn a new language while worrying about someone I loved.
One of the most important things I learned was that we didn't have to understand everything in one day. We could gather information, ask questions, get another opinion, and take the next step when we were ready.
That's why I created these resources. I hope they help make those first weeks a little easier to navigate.
Debra Othman