Patients share how carefully researching treatment options, consulting multiple specialists, and weighing the benefits and risks of each approach helped them make informed decisions about their prostate cancer care. They encourage patients to advocate for themselves, seek experienced providers, and choose a treatment plan based on their individual diagnosis, priorities, and long-term quality of life.

John Burke:

He suggested a HIFU procedure, High-Intensity Focal Ultrasound. It only had been tested in Canada and in the Bahamas and in Eastern Europe. And I said, "Well, I mean, if it's that favorable." I said, "What is your success rate?" Well, it works sometimes and sometimes it doesn't. And it's about all that he could offer me. I asked him, since he was new to purchasing this equipment and it's a new procedure in the United States, I said, "Did he have an experienced operator of such a piece of equipment, that did you hire this person as well?" And he said that, "No," that he would do the procedure himself.

And I asked him what type of training that he had? And he said that he had none, but he would have a technician, an engineer from the manufacturer of this medical equipment, would be with him and would guide him through the process. His presentation was powerful and my decision was that I liked everything that he said about the HIFU procedure, but yet, I didn't like the fact that a relative novice would be performing that.

I say I, but also, my wife was certainly doing all the legwork and technical research. So we decided to find out who does the HIFU procedure, but who has the most experience? So my idea was if you're going to have a pilot run the newest plane, I want the best pilot. I don't want a new pilot. I want the guy who has the most time in the seat. So we did extensive research and I interviewed these... I and we, my wife and I, interviewed these and I'm not even so sure if I should say, doctor. These proceduralists proceed over the phone.

One gentleman in Kentucky, another one in California and another person who we ultimately decided upon in Sarasota, Florida. This wasn't done in an afternoon. It was painstaking months. And I was totally sold on the procedure, and then through hours and hours of interviewing on the phone, I decided upon the operator of the equipment, a doctor.

And I submitted the paperwork to my insurance company and they rejected. The best healthcare that money can buy, the best healthcare plan in the United States and they rejected any type of monetary compensation. But at that point in time, I was emotionally driven and I wanted to get on with... They guaranteed me a quick recovery, maybe a little bit. Seven to 10 days of being uncomfortable after no side effects, none, as opposed to a prostatectomy, which the side effects were maybe yes, maybe no, and the list was as long as a phone book.

And so that's how I was compiling the data and extrapolating the data and that this is what drove my decision. There was a heavy monetary price to pay for the... I said, "Listen, I put it all, I framed it all. I'm still a very healthy young man." The initial price was $25,000. Two weeks out of work. It's a suitable amount of money. The living expenses to support myself and my wife in Florida for two weeks, but it didn't seem like a lot. I equated it in my own mind to say, "Listen, the price of a used car, a used car, you can't say no. It's your health. It's the rest of your life. A small amount of money to pay." And so we followed through.

Tom Hulsey:

I was stage two, Gleason score of seven. And so from that point, even though I was suffering, I still did my research. I did a lot of due diligence on the different options available to me, because one of the advantages of having the prostate cancer caught early is you have more options available to you. But I did end up having a robotic prostatectomy and the reason that I did that was at the time, I just wanted the cancer out of my body.

And what really make that decision was after witnessing what my best friend went through, I did not want to go through what he went through. And since it was early stage, the cancer was contained within the prostate. That's the direction I went. At the time, I was going to beat it and I actually was physically ready for the surgery. Maybe not mentally yet, but physically, I was ready for it because I was very physically active and I trained like I was getting ready to do an Ironman, which is what I had been doing prior to my diagnosis.

So I was very fit, but I trained for it because I knew the recovery was going to be rough. But again, physically, I was good, but mentally, I still was not there and that comes later. I was very diligent in doing my research on the different options. Again, I interviewed specialists for different types of treatments, whether it be radiation, the prostatectomy, seeds and everything.

So I was very well versed. I like to say that an educated patient is a smart patient, but the one thing that I had regrets about or something that bothered me though is these different specialists I interviewed though, were advocating for their own specific treatment, rather than what was best for Tom. Again, though, I was driven by the fact of what I had witnessed with my friend and why I went with the treatment I did.