Go Back  Bike Forums > Bike Forums > Fifty Plus (50+) > Pills and Ills
Reload this Page >

Fluctuating psa numbers

Notices
Pills and Ills This is a discussion subforum for the health challenges faced by riders 50+. These discussions are in no way to be considered professional medical advice.

Fluctuating psa numbers

Old 09-12-20, 10:48 AM
  #1  
Bikingplumber
Newbie
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Sep 2020
Posts: 4
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts
Fluctuating psa numbers

I am 62 years young, ride and race mountain bikes for last 10 years. I ride 4 days a week approx for 2 hours at a time. Distance and elevation fluctuates depending on terrain.

Since 2015 I have been getting my psa checked every 6 months. I have been consistently at 2.0 until a checkup in 2018. I spiked at 5.8 a huge increase. I went to a urologist and got the full check. No history of prostate problems in my family. He finally asked me if I rode a bike and had sex less than 48 hours of blood draw. I did! He said that was probably it.

i have had 3 subsequent tests since then. The first two were back to 2.0. This last one (last week) was 4.8. I forgot about the 48 hour rule and rode 12 hrs. before test. Urologist checked me out and said other than spiked psa everything is fine.

Had anyone else seen big spikes in psa when riding less than 48 hours prior to blood draw for psa?
Bikingplumber is offline  
Old 09-12-20, 10:18 PM
  #2  
CV-6 
If I own it, I ride it
 
CV-6's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2005
Location: Cardinal Country
Posts: 5,593

Bikes: Lejeune(14), Raleigh, Raysport, Jan De Reus, Gazelle, Masi, B. Carré(4), Springfield, Motobecane(2), Greg Lemond, Andre Bertin, Schwinn Paramount

Mentioned: 55 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 591 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 656 Times in 308 Posts
Quite common to have it happen.
__________________
Please do not "like" my posts. This isn't Facebook.

Lynn Travers

Photos

CV-6 is offline  
Old 09-13-20, 10:21 AM
  #3  
BillyD
Administrator
 
BillyD's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: Hudson Valley, NY
Posts: 32,895

Bikes: Merlin Cyrene '04; Bridgestone RB-1 '92

Mentioned: 325 Post(s)
Tagged: 2 Thread(s)
Quoted: 11889 Post(s)
Liked 6,481 Times in 3,411 Posts
Moved to Pills & Its from 50+
__________________
See, this is why we can't have nice things. - - smarkinson
Where else but the internet can a bunch of cyclists go and be the tough guy? - - jdon
BillyD is offline  
Old 09-13-20, 10:39 AM
  #4  
Mojo31
-------
 
Join Date: Jul 2020
Location: Tejas
Posts: 12,614
Mentioned: 1 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 9518 Post(s)
Liked 6,264 Times in 3,453 Posts
Sounds like you need to stop having sex. 😜
Mojo31 is offline  
Old 09-13-20, 10:48 AM
  #5  
OldTryGuy
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jun 2013
Location: SW Fl.
Posts: 5,604

Bikes: Day6 Semi Recumbent "FIREBALL", 1981 Custom Touring Paramount, 1983 Road Paramount, 2013 Giant Propel Advanced SL3, 2018 Specialized Red Roubaix Expert mech., 2002 Magna 7sp hybrid, 1976 Bassett Racing 45sp Cruiser

Mentioned: 17 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1063 Post(s)
Liked 771 Times in 499 Posts
Originally Posted by Bikingplumber
I am 62 years young, ride and race mountain bikes for last 10 years. I ride 4 days a week approx for 2 hours at a time. Distance and elevation fluctuates depending on terrain.

Since 2015 I have been getting my psa checked every 6 months. I have been consistently at 2.0 until a checkup in 2018. I spiked at 5.8 a huge increase. I went to a urologist and got the full check. No history of prostate problems in my family. He finally asked me if I rode a bike and had sex less than 48 hours of blood draw. I did! He said that was probably it.

i have had 3 subsequent tests since then. The first two were back to 2.0. This last one (last week) was 4.8. I forgot about the 48 hour rule and rode 12 hrs. before test. Urologist checked me out and said other than spiked psa everything is fine.

Had anyone else seen big spikes in psa when riding less than 48 hours prior to blood draw for psa?
Irritation does indeed cause erroneous PSA readings AND ingesting certain meds and foods can mask a true reading by lowering the number. Fluctuations can be a cause for concern but even more so is a constant rise over a period of sequential tests. If the rise is a "doubling in number OR MORE" than further action most definitely is suggested.
OldTryGuy is offline  
Old 09-13-20, 10:51 AM
  #6  
Clyde1820
Senior Member
 
Join Date: May 2014
Location: USA
Posts: 1,944

Bikes: 1996 Trek 970 ZX Single Track 2x11

Mentioned: 8 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 610 Post(s)
Liked 558 Times in 423 Posts
Originally Posted by Bikingplumber
(Urologist) finally asked me if I rode a bike and had sex less than 48 hours of blood draw. I did! He said that was probably it.
Hm.

I wonder whether that's due to false positives, or that heavier activity "kicks loose" some of the chemical markers from questionable spots that might well be developing into cancers, or that the body normally produces such stuff under stress or heavy exercise.
Clyde1820 is offline  
Old 09-13-20, 11:01 AM
  #7  
StanSeven
Administrator
 
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: Delaware shore
Posts: 13,569

Bikes: Cervelo C5, Guru Photon, Waterford, Specialized CX

Mentioned: 16 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1102 Post(s)
Liked 2,135 Times in 1,440 Posts
Originally Posted by OldTryGuy
If the rise is a "doubling in number OR MORE" than further action most definitely is suggested.
I know OldTryGuy unfortunately has extensive experience in this area. Any advice from him should be taken seriously.

I went through something similar. It turned out to be cancer after years of suspicious testing and nothing found until the end. I went to one of the best hospitals in the country before they found it. From all the doctors I talked with plus all the research I did, that kind of fluctuation is something to be concerned with. Cycling should make anywhere close to that increase.
StanSeven is offline  
Old 09-13-20, 01:10 PM
  #8  
Bikingplumber
Newbie
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Sep 2020
Posts: 4
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts
Thanks for all the advise everyone! In the 4 years I have been tracking my psa the only two that registered high I rode my SS steel hardtail mountain bike for 2 hours prior to blood draw 12 hrs. later. I had psa of 2.0 prior to and after both high readings. No history of prostate or colon problems in my family. No urinary issues.

All the other times I waited a minimum of 48 hours and have consistently had a 2.0 psa. Also after the first high reading 2 years ago I retested 2 weeks later and my psa went from a 5.8 back to the normal 2.0.

just got my psa retested from this last episode where psa was 4.8 and it just came back at 2.0.

The urologist reluctantly partially agreed with me that I need to wait a minimum of 48 hours after riding for psa test. Found no reason for any other testing.

the correlation of waiting 48 hours prior to testing is the most logical reason for high psa.
Bikingplumber is offline  
Old 09-13-20, 01:15 PM
  #9  
Bikingplumber
Newbie
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Sep 2020
Posts: 4
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts
BTW no constant rise rise in psa. The only two times I saw a spike, within one to two weeks after spikes I retested (after abstaining from riding) and both times the psa returned to my normal 2.0.
Bikingplumber is offline  
Old 09-13-20, 01:32 PM
  #10  
OldTryGuy
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jun 2013
Location: SW Fl.
Posts: 5,604

Bikes: Day6 Semi Recumbent "FIREBALL", 1981 Custom Touring Paramount, 1983 Road Paramount, 2013 Giant Propel Advanced SL3, 2018 Specialized Red Roubaix Expert mech., 2002 Magna 7sp hybrid, 1976 Bassett Racing 45sp Cruiser

Mentioned: 17 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 1063 Post(s)
Liked 771 Times in 499 Posts
Originally Posted by Bikingplumber
BTW no constant rise rise in psa. The only two times I saw a spike, within one to two weeks after spikes I retested (after abstaining from riding) and both times the psa returned to my normal 2.0.
Exactly the results one would hope for. BTW, one can have a PSA Test done at any chosen time without the need of a script from a doctor. Certain labs have the necessary information online and the cost is very reasonable. In this day and age one MUST SELF ADVOCATE since there are still some doctors who are not up to date on some current medical protocols.
OldTryGuy is offline  
Old 09-13-20, 01:34 PM
  #11  
Bikingplumber
Newbie
Thread Starter
 
Join Date: Sep 2020
Posts: 4
Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 3 Post(s)
Likes: 0
Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts
That is exactly what I will do next time. Thanks OldTryGuy!
Bikingplumber is offline  
Old 09-13-20, 07:19 PM
  #12  
grizzly59
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2016
Posts: 712
Mentioned: 2 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 283 Post(s)
Liked 262 Times in 164 Posts
If you have a 4.8 you need a recheck tout de suite. Call your GP and ask what he thinks, then tell him exactly what the urologist said. 4.8 is too high to assume the elevation is due to riding a bike. The test is picking up a signal from something.

You don't mean 0.2 - 0.48?
grizzly59 is offline  
Old 09-13-20, 07:37 PM
  #13  
bg18947
Member
 
Join Date: Jul 2020
Location: North Jersey
Posts: 33

Bikes: 72 Iverson Drag Stripper, 81 Raleigh Super Course, 82 Appel 531, 82 Falcon 753, 83 Pinarello Record SL, 85 Strawberry SL, 97 Cannondale F1000

Mentioned: 0 Post(s)
Tagged: 0 Thread(s)
Quoted: 10 Post(s)
Liked 17 Times in 12 Posts
Cycling Will Raise PSA a TAD

I had gone through a physical late 2019 and my PSA was 7.2 and 6.8. When I read up on some research, cycling before a test is done typically only raises the score 0.2-0.3, based on a study in Australia. I asked the urologist about this and he said it wouldn't be that high. I had an MRI and biopsy done, generally negative. I'm due for another test next week.
bg18947 is offline  

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off


Thread Tools
Search this Thread

Contact Us - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Terms of Service -

Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Use of this site indicates your consent to the Terms of Use.