September is Prostate Cancer Awareness Month. A time to raise awareness and to focus attention on those impacted by the disease. During this time, my thoughts are with all who have lived and live with prostate cancer, their families and loved ones, and the medical professionals involved. My thoughts are with you.
One of the best ways to help raise awareness is to encourage the men you love to visit the doctor. I know too many men who routinely avoid seeing a doctor as they fear they might get bad news. Although there is never a good time to receive bad news, it’s always better to be aware of health issues sooner than later. Please don’t avoid seeing the doctor. Even if you feel healthy, it’s vital to have regular checkups every year.
Most of my guy friends are car buffs, who restore and drive muscle and vintage cars. I remind them of the importance of regular health checkups and relate it to maintaining a vehicle. They immediately understand that small problems can quickly become much larger issues if left undetected. Only routine maintenance allows you to detect and address issues before they affect the rest of the car.
The same is true for our health. It’s far better to detect cancer in the early stages than the later stages. Early detection offers the most options, including active surveillance, to monitor before making any treatment decisions. Just like small issues in a car may not be noticeable, prostate cancer usually doesn’t have any symptoms in the early stages. That’s why it’s imperative to be proactive with our health and ask our doctor about prostate cancer screening.
I’m currently 39-months NED after being diagnosed and treated for prostate cancer. I was 57 years old and had no noticeable symptoms, and yet my cancer was in the final stage before breaching the prostate. It was a shock to be diagnosed with cancer since I had no health issues, no symptoms, and excellent health. I lived an active lifestyle, rode my bike to work, in the gym most days and an active martial artist. Therefore, it was hard to accept and left me dazed and confused.
I’m thankful my doctor recommended regular prostate cancer screening even though I had no symptoms. Without regular testing, I may not have known until it spread. I know too many men in stage-4 who weren’t even aware of prostate cancer screening until after their diagnosis. If they had regular testing, their cancer most likely would have been found before it spread. Therefore, possibly avoiding a terminal diagnosis.
Men, please don’t let your health take a backseat in your life. See your doctor today and ask about prostate cancer screening. And encourage a friend or two to do the same.
About Gogs Gagnon
A prostate cancer survivor and native of New Westminster, Gogs Gagnon followed an early passion for computers by becoming a programmer and independent technology consultant. In the course of his career, he has developed software for Apple, IBM, and the government of British Columbia, where he was the lead programmer analyst and data architect. Now, in addition to promoting prostate cancer awareness, Gogs devotes much of his time to writing. His next book is a coming-of-age memoir set in the Lower Mainland of British Columbia during the 1970s. The father of three children, Gogs lives with his wife and their two dogs in the Comox Valley on Vancouver Island, BC.