Us
-Too! Brampton General Meeting
Tuesday,
8 Sep 2009
"The
Gale and Graham Wright Prostate Cancer Centre -
North York General Hospital" and "Open Forum"
Dr.
Michelle Flax & Dr. Stanley Flax
The Terry Miller
hall was filled to near capacity with around 65 members,
wives and guests attending as Dr. Michelle Flax & Dr.
Stanley Flax
opened our season with this first-of-its kind joint session.
Both doctors
have drawn record audiences at our previous meetings.
Dr. Stanley Flax's
talk was on the "The Gale and Graham Wright Prostate
Cancer Centre
- North York General Hospital" but prior to really getting
into it, he shared information
on the new PSa test. Known as PCA3, this new test has been
talked about in medical circles
and in the news but this was the first time we received more
information about it.
He explained that the
PCA3 ( Prostate Cancer Antigen 3) is a Prostate Cancer Gene
that is used to detect prostate cancer. The test relies on
relating the ratio of the PCA 3
messenger RNA protein with the PSa protein and from this ratio
determining the
risk of prostate cancer.
The PCA3 test is not
a blood test but a urine test with a urine sample being taken
immediately
following a prostatic massage (similar to a DRE) to release
fluid into the urethra.
The fist 20 cc or so are analyzed looking for the DNA protein.
Quoting some of the numbers
that have been worked out statistically, ratios greater than
35 indicated a high risk of prostate
cancer while below 35 meant low risk. Insufficient DNA implied
the test was inconclusive.
The test provides another tool in the diagnosis of prostate
cancer and could be used in many
relevant ways. At the moment the test is not accepted or covered
by OHIP but if it gets used
and accepted widely it may hopefully become main stream.
Presenting "The
Gale and Graham Wright Prostate Cancer Centre" he mentioned
that the centre
has now been operational for over 2 years and currently sees
about 2500 patients a year.
Dr. Flax walked the audience through a 'virtual' tour of the
dedicated facility as he talked
about its inception, background, staff, the referral process,
and the patient resources available.
He also discussed the Center's workings and operations, the
panel of Doctors and hospital affiliations.
Citing the the traditional hurdle of 'delay' in getting treatment,
he explained how patients had
benefited as result of this dedicated facility where services
were integrated efficiently under
one roof. For example Biopsy facilities were available on
site and results could be obtained
expediently. This eliminated patient wait time, significantly
speeding up the process
from 'referral' to 'diagnosis' to 'treatment'. Thus the main
push behind the center has
been to give priority to Cancer patients which he felt was
a major step forward. Future
directions lay in customised treatment options and on prevention.
Dr. Michelle Flax followed up with
her talk discussing the Emotional and Psychological impacts
of the diagnosis of Prostate Cancer. She praised the Chapter's
work in providing the needed
support, describing what we were doing as really 'Phenomenal'
and making a difference where it mattered
most. She talked about the many types of stresses a diagnosis
of cancer can bring - the uncertainties,
the sense of frailty and vulnerability, the anger and the
depression. She spoke on aspects
of spousal and family support and touched upon many of the
the coping strategies to prevent
falling into a negative cycle. Michelle has offered to recommend
us to many programs designed to
help members, spouses and families cope with this chronic
stress. In her closing remarks
she
encouraged living in the present and advised the use all
of the resources
available to live as fully as possible.
Dr. Michelle Flax would really like to hear from members
spouses and understand their
perspective and feelings about the impacts of prostate cancer
on their marriage and lives.
There has been a gap in this area and spouses feedback can
help build better programs to
serve their needs better. Many of you have asked for her
email address and here it is:
michelleflax@rogers.com
Following the talks there was "Open Forum"
to answer medical and psychological questions
about prostate cancer with the doctors participating as
a 'panel' and addressing audience
queries from both a medical and emotional perspective.
First to be addressed were Questions received by email followed
by questions from the audience.
Members who submitted the email questions and wish to review
the responses can listen to the
Audio Recordings (Q&A ) of this session.
In concluding the evening
Jim Dorsey
made announcements regarding the upcoming
'Cruisin' For A Cure Canada' event scheduled
Sep 13. He elaborated on many of the
improvements, added features and attractions of the show that
would make it much more
enjoyable, on a bigger scale than before and appealing to
a wider age group.
About Dr. Stanley
Flax:
Dr. Stanley Flax is a long standing member favorite and a
strong supporter
of Us-Too! Brampton. He has lectured worldwide and is a renowned
leader in technology with special interests in minimally invasive
surgery, practicing both adult and pediatric urology.
About Dr. Michelle
Flax
Dr. Michelle Flax is
a Clinical Psychologist in Private practice in Toronto for
the past 22 years.
She Teaches at the Toronto Institute of Contemporary Psychoanalysis.
Her Major
area of interest is in relationships of significance; writing
and speaking about the relationship
between patient and therapist. She is focused jointly with
Dr. Stanley Flax on a program
she has created to help those diagnosed with prostate cancer.
AUDIO:
Track 01: The
Gale and Graham Wright Prostate Cancer Center - Talk
http://www.ustoo-brampton.com/Flax09/Stanley Flax Talk.ram
[4.53 Mbytes, Talk time: 00:19:14]
Track 02: Psychological
and emotional impacts of Prostate Cancer and Coping strategies
http://www.ustoo-brampton.com/Flax09/Michelle Flax Talk.ram
[2.23 Mbytes, Talk time: 00:09:26]
Track 03: Open
Forum - Question and Answer Session
http://www.ustoo-brampton.com/Flax09/QA.ram
[9.46 Mbytes, Talk time: 00:40:10]
SLIDES:
The
Gale and Graham Wright Prostate Cancer Center - Presentation
Slides
http://www.ustoo-brampton.com/Flax09/ProstateCancerCenter.pdf
[Acrobat File, Size:
19.7 Mbytes, Pages: 31]
This was our
first such joint session ever and certainly appreciated by
one and all.
Our sincere thanks to Dr. Michelle Flax
and Dr .Stanley Flax for a
very informative and thoroughly enjoyable evening.
We hope we can have a repeat joint session in the future.
