As noted earlier, it is important for you to have frank, open discussions with your cancer care team. They want to answer all of your questions, no matter how trivial you might think they are. For instance, consider these questions:

Has my cancer spread beyond my prostate?

 What additional tests do you recommend and why?

What is the stage and grade of my cancer?

What do those mean in my case?

What is my expected survival rate based on stage, grade, and various treatment options?

Do you recommend a radical prostatectomy?

Why or why not?

What other treatment(s) might be appropriate for me?

Among those treatments, what are the risks or side effects that I should expect?

What are the chances that I will have problems with incontinence or impotence?

What are the chances of recurrence of my cancer with the treatment programs we have discussed?

Should I follow a special diet?

In addition to these sample questions, be sure to write down some of your own. For instance, you might want to be reassured about recovery times so you can plan your work schedule. If you are younger, you may want to discuss your plans for children should impotence or sterility occur. Or, if you are older, you may want to discuss survival rates for your stage of prostate cancer as related to various approaches to treatment. You also may want to ask about second opinions and about experimental programs or clinical trials for which you may qualify.

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