During my annual physical in 2013, my primary physician, Dr. Kenneth Kroll, noted that my PSA (though well in the normal range) was rising faster than expected. He referred me to Urology Austin for further evaluation. Dr. Ruff did a biopsy that showed that my prostate was indeed quite cancerous. Though I was inclined to have a radical prostatectomy, Dr. Ruff highly recommended that I have a consultation with Dr. Garza to consider the pro and cons of radiation therapy. Dr. Garza, like Dr. Ruff, allowed all the time I required to understand the procedure and get answers to all my questions and concerns.
After a further consultation with my wife, a long term RN/FNP, I decided on a radical prostatectomy, which was performed in October via DaVinci robotic assisted surgery. While Dr. Ruff did an excellent job, there was an adverse pathology result for which follow up radiation treatment was recommended.
In September and October of 2014, I had 39 short treatments at Dr. Garza’s office.
Dr. Garza, his assistant Gabe, the ladies at the front desk, and the techs in the x-ray room were all very friendly and professional. I even grew fond of (Big) Bertha, the large x-ray unit! The treatments were easy with extremely minor (practically non-existent) side effects.
In conclusion, I highly recommend the following:
- Dont’t get prostate cancer! (Unfortunately, not in your control.) But if you do:
- Consult both Dr. Ruff and Dr. Garza to see which treatment is right for you. If it’s a tossup, you can’t go wrong with either one.
- If your choose surgery, Dr. Ruff is your best choice.
- If your choose radiation, Dr. Garza and his team can’t be beaten.