Two doctors. Two consultations. One clear path forward
Four months ago today, life changed.
Not with fanfare. Not with warning. Just a Friday night, a pain that couldn’t be ignored, and a journey that neither of us could have anticipated or fully prepared for.
Four months later, we sat in two different consulting rooms, on two different days, and came away with something we had been waiting for since the very beginning of this journey.
Clarity.
22nd July - The Urologist
The Urologist is a careful man. Cautious by nature and by practice. He does not rush , which we have come to understand and respect, even when the waiting has been hard.
But on the 22nd of July, the questions we brought with us were direct. And some of them were met with evasion.
Jean is a complex patient, he told us. The small aneurism in the pelvic area. The splenic clot and blocked artery. The heart attack and the stent. All of these make decisions more complicated, more layered, more carefully considered.
I told him something that I have known since the beginning of this journey:
“As Christians, death does not frighten us.”
He looked at us and said quietly:
“I am terrified.”
It was an honest moment. A human moment from a man who carries enormous responsibility for the lives in his care. And it told us something important – that he takes Jean’s complexity seriously. That he is not cavalier with decisions.
He recommended a second opinion. With an oncologist.
We left with a referral and, once again, more waiting.
29th July - The Oncologist
What a difference a week makes.
The oncologist walked in with energy, warmth and a sense of humour that immediately put us at ease. He had read Jean’s file before we arrived.
“I was expecting a geriatric 72 year old,” he said, looking at Jean. “Not this.”
Jean smiled. So did I.
He had time for us. Real time. He answered difficult questions directly and without evasion. He explained things clearly, acknowledged complexity without hiding behind it, and treated us as intelligent adults capable of making informed decisions about Jean’s own body.
He confirmed what we already knew: Jean is a complex patient. The aneurism, the splenic clot, the stent — these are all real considerations. But he had seen far worse. And the anti-coagulation therapy was taking care of the clotting concerns.
Jean told him, as he has told every doctor on this journey:
“I am not afraid of death. But I would like some quality of life.”
The oncologist nodded. And then he said something that made both of us exhale:
“You have at least another ten years.”
The Path Forward
The oncologist laid out the options clearly:
Jean can have the catheter removed and monitored for the day to ensure comfortable bladder function. The urologist had had his doubts. The oncologist’s view: it is a reasonable next step.
Robotic surgery remains an option. It is available in Johannesburg or Pretoria for those who choose that route. Jean would need to remain in Gauteng for two weeks post procedure – Lisa being able to support and look after her dad.
But his recommendation for now: Firmagon injections. The urologist had indicated this as a viable next step too.
Monthly ADT hormone therapy, working through the pituitary gland, starving the cancer and the prostate of testosterone. Shrinking both. Monitored monthly. After three months, the next decision can be made with clearer information.
It is measured. It is monitored. It does not burn bridges. And it aligns with our belief that the body, properly supported, responds.
He also mentioned the possibility of some degree of incontinence in future, something we will address if and when it arises. Jean’s response? Calm. Determined. Unbothered.
That, in itself, is a four month transformation.
The Numbers That Matter
Four months ago :
- Prostate size : 272ml
- PSA : 224
Today :
- Prostate size : 129ml
- PSA : 120
More than half the prostate size . Gone. Through nutrition, natural intervention, mindset, lifestyle and faith – before a single injection or surgical procedure. The oncologist noted Jean’s improved mindset and significantly healthier eating habits. I may have pointed out that Jean has no choice in the matter with me around. He smiled. He understood completely.
Jean is also exploring certain natural antiparasitic protocols that growing numbers of integrative health practitioners are researching, and implementing, in relation to cancer support. We continue to research, pray and trust our instincts on this path.
What I Know
I have maintained from the very beginning that Jean will be one hundred percent healed.
I said it. I claim it. I stand by it.
Not because the numbers are perfect. Not because the road has been easy. Not because every doctor has agreed or every door has opened smoothly.
But because of faith. Because of a whisper I heard at the beginning of this journey that told me Jean would come through this – healed, and different.
The waiting has been God’s way of saying: Be still and know that I am God.
The delay has always been in His time. Not ours. Never ours.
And today, four months to the day since that Friday night that changed everything, I look at Jean and I see a man who is stronger in spirit, clearer in purpose, quieter in soul and more deliberate in how he lives than he has been in years.
That is not nothing.
That is everything.
Four Months of Gratitude
To everyone who has walked this road with us, through prayers, messages, practical help, encouragement and love:
Thank you.
Four months ago, life for Jean, and for Brig, changed. Probably forever. But change, we have learned, is not always loss. Sometimes it is the beginning of something more intentional. More grateful. More alive.
We love you. We appreciate you. And we will keep sharing this journey, because, somewhere out there, someone needs to know they are not walking theirs alone.
If this story has resonated with you, we would love to hear from you .