September is Prostate Cancer Awareness Month, and I couldn’t let the month end without saying something.
If you’ve been following along with Starrs Aboard, you probably already know why this one hits pretty close to home for us.
We’ve been very fortunate, and we are incredibly grateful. But going through this with Ed has also made me realize how many misconceptions there are about prostate cancer.
Way back when I was in nursing school, we were taught that if a man lives long enough, he will develop prostate cancer and that it really wasn’t that concerning because it is so slow growing. And yes, there are prostate cancers that are very slow growing…but there are also aggressive prostate cancers that need attention sooner rather than later. Somewhere along the way, people started thinking, “Oh, it’s just prostate cancer.”
And I’ll admit, that is what I was TAUGHT to think in nursing school.
But it’s simply not true.
Not all prostate cancers are slow growing. And even when treatment goes well, treatment isn’t necessarily the end of the story. The constant worrying every 3 months about another PSA test, the side effects of treatments…some right away, some years later, the not knowing what next month brings, and follow-ups for years, sometimes for life. That doesn’t mean something is wrong. Even if you are blessed and the cancer never returns, it’s emotionally draining. In reality, it isn’t the “easy cancer” people sometimes think it is.
Men, especially as they get older, need to talk to their doctors about their individual risk and when PSA screening is appropriate for them. Getting tested is as simple as a blood test.
Pay attention to your own numbers. Keep a record. Notice when something changes. Ask questions when something doesn’t make sense. One number or one trend doesn’t always tell the whole story, but nobody knows your history better than you do.
Be your own advocate, or be the advocate for someone you love.
Pay attention. Speak up. Ask the question.
If this post encourages even one person to have a conversation with their doctor that they might have otherwise put off, then it was worth writing.
That conversation could save your life!
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