“PSA” could stand for a lot of things… Public Service Announcement… Public Securities Association… Prostate Specific Antigen. I know a bit about that third one.
In early 2018, our doctor was concerned that my husband’s PSA numbers were escalating. She referred us to a urologist who ordered a biopsy procedure, advising us that JC should not lift anything for a few weeks afterward. I was facing my own serious health issue at the time and was unable to physically do much. Of course, we had a major winter storm predicted a few days after the procedure date. I knew I’d probably need to call for help.
JC and I hadn’t been attending a regular church in those days, but there was a place nearby that I wanted to check out. As I entered that building that would soon become like a second home to us, I was greeted by two beautiful women that I’m blessed to now call friends. They welcomed me and asked if I needed prayer for anything. And after I explained the storm raging in my life, they put their gentle hands on me and fervently prayed.
With the help of my stepson, we got JC to and from the surgery center. Days later I made sure JC rested as that snowstorm hit. Amazingly, I felt stronger than I had in a long time. I shoveled our walkways and steps and patio with ease. A friend was able to plow our driveway.
Next came the follow up visit to the urologist and the news that JC definitely had prostate cancer, and it was bad. It had metastasized into his lymph nodes, his hip, his lower back, and there was a large tumor in his bladder. The doctor said it was Stage 4 cancer, and a 9 on the Gleason Scale (an indicator of how aggressive prostate cancer is, with the highest number being a 10). JC was understandably shaken, but I was unusually calm. It was as if I knew this was just a temporary storm, and Jesus was in it with us.
The next several months were a whirlwind of getting to know a fantastic oncologist at a cancer center an hour away and starting JC on injections and medication. That doctor was surprised how rapidly JC’s numbers had escalated. He took his time and answered so many questions, compassionate because he was in remission with his own cancer battle. He told us JC would never be a candidate for radiation treatments, the most common therapy for prostate cancer.
During the following turbulent months, with JC going through a very difficult procedure to deal with that tumor, a huge army of prayer warriors sent their love to us and their prayers to our Abba Father! All our family and friends, many of JC’s former high school classmates, the wonderful people at the church JC started attending with me, prayer chains started by many of them… and me. Every morning at 6:00am when I gave JC the 4 large pills he had to take on an empty stomach, I laid next to him, held him, and prayed for God’s miraculous healing.
By December of 2018, one of the injections was removed from JC’s therapy protocol. The oncologist was amazed again at how rapidly the PSA numbers plummeted! The full body bone scans showed most of the cancer spots in the other parts of his body were either significantly smaller or outright gone! The doctor said he wanted JC to see a renowned radiation oncologist to discuss possible treatments. That specialist said he was impressed but not convinced and that we should come back in two to three years. By the autumn of 2019, the oncologist told us to return to the radiation oncologist. What we were told would never be an option was now possible! JC endured yet another procedure to prep for the radiation sessions, then spent the next month and a half going for treatments Monday through Friday. I went with him on January 20, 2020 as JC had his 45th and final treatment and celebrated by ringing a big brass bell in the waiting area!
As I sit here writing this, I’m reminded of how very blessed we’ve been. One week from today is JC’s birthday, and I’ll celebrate the fact that my love is still with me on this journey called Life. I call him my Miracle Man, because he overcame so many obstacles and beat the odds. I’m thankful that we are in a place and time where we could get him such great medical care. Mostly, I’m grateful that our Abba Father heard the countless prayers that were sent up by our beloved Prayer Warrior Army, and that He healed my JC’s cancer.
JC still gets a bone strengthening injection every few months. He still takes 2 of those pills every day. For the past couple years, his full body bone scans have shown only the tiniest, almost undetectable, spot on his lower back. The procedures, the treatments, the medications all helped, and after all, God gave the doctors, staff, and researchers the ability to provide this help. But above everything, I know it was the mighty power of all those prayers!
If you believe, you will receive whatever you ask for in prayer. – Matthew 21:22 (NIV)
Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. – Romans 12:12 (NIV)
This is the confidence we have in approaching God: that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. – 1 John 5:14 (NIV)
So my PSA here would be for all you men to get your PSAs checked every year! And you women please make sure the men in your life get checked! And always… ALWAYS… keep praying! Prayer is a powerful thing… a PSA… Prayer to the Son Activation!
Laurie E. Hoppe-Ringer
