PROSTATE CANCER
What men should know about prostate cancer Prostate cancer is the most common cancer found in men, with many men showing no symptoms, often for many years
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ne in six men in Bermuda will be diagnosed with prostate cancer at some point in their lives – and they can’t say they haven’t been warned about it. Awareness events such as Movember and Man on the Run are now established
ƶ[WXUHV RQ WKH %HUPXGD FDOHQGDU ZKLOH health professionals set up men’s health screening programmes and continually push prevention advice on social media. Yet, with the island recording higher incidence rates of prostate cancer than the United States, Europe and the Caribbean, Dr. Michael Czerwinski
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doctors question whether the message is getting through. Fear of the rectal examination, worry over the cost of treatment and plain testosterone are some of the possible explanations for men’s failure to get themselves checked regularly. Given that 98 per cent of prostate cancer cases in Bermuda are diagnosed in men over 50 – the average age of diagnosis is about 65 – men are advised to get tested annually from the age of 40. However, Dr. Michael Brooks, who recently held a session of free screenings at Dynamic Urology Services on Point Finger Road, notes: “Most of them were ƶUVW WLPH YLVLWRUV RU KDG QRW VHHQ D GRFWRU for years and years. “They hadn’t had a general physical, and no sort of blood test.” 2QH LQ ƶYH YLVLWRUV WR WKH VHVVLRQV received abnormal results and were sent for further tests. “It was concerning because it’s a relatively high pick-up rate,” Dr. Brooks says. ţ, ƶQG WKHUH DUH TXLWH D IHZ PHQ RXW there who still believe that once they feel 2. WKDW WKH\ DUH ƶQH 7KH\ RQO\ VHHN doctor’s advice when something happens, or they have some sort of symptom. “With regard to prostate cancer, that is often the wrong approach, since in the early stages it is largely asymptomatic. Oftentimes, when you do get symptoms, it’s at a very advanced stage.” Dr. Brooks and other doctors have tried to improve awareness. “I have been on radio shows, promotions on social media, but men in comparison to women are less likely to get their health sorted out and be proactive and stay well,” he says. “My only guess is testosterone. We think GLƵHUHQWO\ :H DUH JHQHUDOO\ OHVV SURDFWLYH about going to the doctor to get things checked or have a wellness check.” Dr. Brooks, who practiced in his home country Jamaica and the UK before arriving LQ %HUPXGD WKUHH \HDUV DJR LGHQWLƶHV an additional hurdle when it comes to prostate cancer. “The problem comes in with rectal examination. I think still for some men it’s a huge issue. They don’t like to have the examination. ţ, GR ƶQG PRUH PHQ UHIXVH UHFWDO examination here than in the UK.” Dr. Michael Czerwinski, a urologist at Health & Beauty Summer 2022
