MY CONDITION: Prostate Cancer

TYPE OF PROCEDURE I HAD: da Vinci Radical prostatectomy

MY SURGEON: Dr. Ingolf Tuerk

HOSPITAL WHERE MY PROCEDURE WAS PERFORMED: Lahey Clinic Medical Center

OTHER TREATMENTS I CONSIDERED BEFORE DA VINCI SURGERY:
Brachytherapy, radiation

THE BIGGEST CONCERNS I HAD ABOUT TREATMENT:
Quality of life....Will I be able to engage in intercourse, or will I be able to control my urine?

WHY I CHOSE DA VINCI SURGERY:
Gave me the best option to function at a higher level.

MY PAIN AND/OR DISCOMFORT LEVEL:
NO PAIN---and I have a high tolerance for pain.

ABOUT MY RECOVERY TIME:
One week, two weeks, three weeks and then, after three weeks, all of a sudden you start seeing a quicker escalation of the recovery.

WHEN I RETURNED TO NORMAL ACTIVITIES:
Anyone can do it; you don't need to be an athlete. It's just the athletics in my history made me more diligent about following a regimen, but you have to be diligent about it and your results come back much quicker.

ABOUT MY SURGEON AND/OR FACILITY STAFF:
Dr. Tuerk is tremendous.

I WOULD RECOMMEND DA VINCI SURGERY TO MY FRIENDS OR FAMILY MEMBERS!

My name is Fred Smerlas. I grew up in Waltham, MA, graduated from high school in 1975. I was a two sport All-American. I played All-American wrestling, All-American in football, State Championship in shot-put. Very active in sports, got a full scholarship to Boston College. I played there for four years. I was drafted by the Buffalo Bills in 1979. I went to Buffalo and played 11 years there. I started in 156 games in a row. I was five-time All Pro. I was three-time All NFL. I was traded to the San Francisco 49ers, played there a year. The next couple of years I went to the New England Patriots and I retired in 1994. I played more plays than any player in the history of American football, nose tackle; I played 200 games.
When I got out of football I sat on the couch and my wife said, "What are you going to do now?"? I said, "I don't know, honey, do you want to try and tackle me?" That's what I did: I hit people with my head. So, I had to change courses really quickly. I got into radio--started at the bottom, worked my way up---and I started my own business, and I took it from there. Now I do nine shows a week and I run a couple of businesses, and now I have the luxury of having the time to work with my kids.
I was diagnosed initially with a bump on my prostate. The doctor said,"You know, you have no signs, your PSAs are low, urination problems aren't there----all these things. So we do a biopsy, and I'm expecting the biopsy to find maybe a spot of calcium, but the biopsy comes back and it's cancer. Now cancer is something that you can't eat it out of your system, you can't exercise it out, you can't will it out. It's there and that was really difficult for me because I'd been able to plow through anything. I'd played with things you wouldn't even believe, ankles sprained so bad you can't move, you tape it up, you ice it up, you shoot it up ...whatever you have to do ...but this you couldn't.
So once the reality of that set in ---it was like getting hit with a Fungo bat in the face. So I'm saying, "My Dad had prostate cancer, my uncle on my Mom's side had prostate cancer and it wasn't a pleasant experience."I said, "What happened to your ability to have an erection? What happened with your ability to urinate? What happened to the quality of your life?" I want quality of life --that's part of it. So they just said , "Take it out, take it out," and I said, "Wait a minute , you know, it's a slow moving cancer. They told me I have a bit to look at this, so I'm going to research every aspect and possibility."
I met with a group from Mass General (Hospital); they said there's three different doctors - One said the seeds, one said radiation, one said operation. The same doctor (who said operation) said he has a scope, a laparoscope, and I said ,"OK, let me go back and think about that." I called another doctor friend of mine, Dr. Sacktein, who's in research for cancer and he said ,"There's also the da Vinci laparoscopy (procedure), and that means it's less invasive." OK, so I looked up top doctors, and I saw a guy that looked like Arnold (Schwarznegger) and I said, "Wow this guy looks interesting," and I did research on him, and it was Dr. Tuerk. I asked people about him, and they said he was a tremendous doctor. Then I called to get an appointment, and I went and met him and he looked at me and said "We fix it, we take it out, we make you better!"? I said, "OK, that makes me very confident."
We talked about what I would be afterwards, which is very important. Would I be able to engage in intercourse? Would I be able to control my urine?...all those things. And he said, "The da Vinci machine gives you [better] vision, it's clearer, it's 3-D, I see it better, it's more precise." Obviously, for the nerves attached to the function of your penis and around in your prostate, and the more clarity you have, obviously, the better it will be, you will be left intact. So, we looked at that and talked to a bunch of doctors that I know around and they said Dr.Tuerk is tremendous, and that this gives me the best option to function at a higher level when I get out. So the decision was made to go with that procedure.
So I had the operation, I woke up from the procedure---NO PAIN ---and I have a high tolerance for pain, but it was not very invasive. I get up, walk around the hospital, couple of times, had my little (IV pole) there. Get something to eat, talk to a couple of people, call my wife, and I went home and I felt good!
Everyone looks at the dark side when they have it. I look at the bright side: I'm getting it out, I'm going to be functioning 100%, I'm going to lift, and I'm going to exercise. I called Dr. Tuerk up and I said, "I just drank 48 ounces of water, I'm walking around the neighborhood for two miles holding it as hard as I can,"and he goes, "You're a little obsessive about it," and I said,"Hell, yeah.!" You strain the muscles, you build the muscles, you know. You do your exercises from top to bottom, you do them at night. And then eventually---you know I started out and I had no control and I was wearing the pull ups, like a baby, and my buddy was making fun of me ; So I saved all of my used pull-ups, and I threw them on his lawn, and said "You deal with it.!"
Anyone can do it; you don't need to be an athlete. It's just the athletics in my history which made me more diligent about following a regimen,. But you have to be diligent about it, and your results come back much quicker. One week, two weeks, three weeks and then, after three weeks, all of a sudden you start seeing a quicker escalation of the recovery.
I went to Disney three weeks later and walked around all day, and it was no problem at all.
You know, medicine has advanced. We have these things. We have robotics that can help you, and move (machines) much more precisely than the hand can. And the increased vision in there, because of the way they can magnify it, it gives you options. That wasn't there 20 years ago. But now there are things. Sometimes you can sit and wait a little longer and monitor it if you want, because you have those options. It's just about knowing what's out there.
That's one of the reasons why I'm here, because I want to tell you that there are options, just go out and find them by searching the Web and searching other doctors. I'm a very busy man, but I came down here to give my story so someone won't make a mistake and not choose the option that will give you the best chance to have your life back whole again, to the best it can. And this does it.