May 04, 2007

Detecting Prostate Cancer Early Saves Lives

Genesis urges men to hop on the bus today, Saturday for prostate exam

DAVENPORT, IOWA - The young African-American doctor goes back to the inner-city barbershop in his neighborhood and tries to engage customers in a discussion about maintaining their health.

He asks customers when they last had a physical. No one can remember. He asks when they last had a prostate exam. Never.

“I’m not letting Halle Berry do that to me,’’ one of the barbershop customers says of the digital rectal exam.

It’s a funny line, but also a strong point being made in the episode of the television show “E.R.” There is plenty of statistical evidence that many minority males don’t think about their health until it is too late.

African-American men are statistically much more likely to die of diabetes, heart disease and cancer than Caucasian men.

The barbershop scene in the “E.R.” episode could have been shot at Joe McLemore’s shop on Harrison Street in Davenport. Same characters, same banter and the same disdain for the importance of physicals.

Proprietor Joe McLemore was guilty as anyone of not taking care of himself. Until 2006, he hadn’t seen a doctor for a routine physical in 40 years. He didn’t even have a regular doctor.

“Then I got real dizzy with high blood pressure. I went to the Emergency Department at Genesis East. They got the blood pressure under control but they told me I had to set up a physical with a doctor,’’ McLemore explained. “I didn’t have a doctor so I went to my wife’s doctor, Debra Jaegle, and as part of the physical, she did a digital prostate exam on me.

“She said my prostate felt hard on the right side.’’

The next stop for McLemore in his enlightenment about the importance of health maintenance and prevention was the office of David Rohlf, M.D., a urologist with Urological Associates, P.C., Davenport. Biopsies were taken from several areas of McLemore’s prostate.

Two days later the news came. Cancer.

“That was a hell of an alarm,’’ McLemore said. “My first thought was ‘What do I do now? What are my options? Do I have it anywhere else?’ ’’

McLemore was lucky, considering his history of not having annual physical exams. The cancer was limited to his prostate. The tumor was removed at Genesis, and he has been cancer-free for about a year.

“I was lucky. I got to the doctors in time,’’ McLemore said. “It’s funny because I’d had plenty of opportunities to get screened in the past. My wife volunteers at United Neighbors, and they have screenings there but I wouldn’t go.

“I still don’t think I would have done anything if it hadn’t been from the dizziness from the high blood pressure.’’

A screening advocate

McLemore has become an advocate for the importance of annual physicals and screenings. There is information in his shop about free prostate screenings this weekend.

Today and Saturday, Genesis is sponsoring the Drive Against Prostate Cancer stop in the Quad Cities. The Drive Against Prostate Cancer bus is the only national mobile screening and education program for prostate cancer.

Confidential and free screenings will be available at four sites over the two days. The bus is specially built for prostate screening. The bus is decked out with a big-screen television, and snacks are available while men wait for their screening.

The facts about prostate cancer match McLemore’s profile before he was diagnosed:

• African-American men have the highest rate of prostate cancer in the world.
• There are no noticeable symptoms of prostate cancer while it is still in its early stages.
• African-American men, or those with a family history of the disease, should start annual screening at age 40.

“I think, unfortunately, some minority men aren’t as involved in some of the screening opportunities as they should be,’’ Dr. Rohlf said. “There are various opportunities throughout the Quad Cities for prostate screenings and other screenings each year.

“But is the publicity of those events reaching the minority populations? One of the best things all of us can do is education. We need to target areas where information can be given and received by all of the population.’’

Now that he freely talks about his cancer history, McLemore is finding out there are many others like him.

“That’s what surprised me. Guys I knew had had prostate cancer, but didn’t talk about it. We need to get the word out by talking about it ourselves. I’m doing what I can, but I’m not sure a lot of people I talk to are really listening,’’ he said. “I understand them because I was them.

“Where I come from, going to the doctor isn’t something you do unless you know there is something wrong. I think black men who grow up poor usually think they either can’t afford to go to the doctor or they don’t need to go. Besides, we aren’t going to live forever. That’s the attitude when you grow up day to day without any money.

“Black women are usually a little better about taking care of themselves because they have those maternal feelings; they have children and grandchildren to think about. But black women are also more likely to die from breast cancer because they don’t get regular mammograms.

“Some of the reasons blacks don’t take care of themselves is access to insurance and things like that, but some of it is just cultural. We just live day to day. That attitude doesn’t make much sense and it is something we can change.’’

Every man older than age 50 should have an annual prostate cancer screening. Testing on The Drive Against Prostate Cancer bus takes less than 10 minutes. Results of the digital rectal exam will be available during the appointment. Results of the PSA exam will be mailed to participants within four weeks.

Each participant will receive a notification letter that briefly explains the test results and provides him and other family members with links to information on the Internet, a toll-free telephone number to the National Prostate Cancer Coalition and a contact at the Genesis Cancer Center.

Men who receive “abnormal’’ results will receive a second letter urging them to immediately seek medical advice.

Each year, 30,000 men die from prostate cancer, making it the second most deadly cancer behind lung cancer.

“We’re finding that men who are 70 and older probably have some prostate cancer, and depending on their circumstances, we might not treat them aggressively,’’ Dr. Rohlf added. “What we’re trying to do is identify the men who are in their 40s and 50s and find that cancer when those men still may live a number of years.

“Because of the digital exam and PSA (prostate-specific antigen) test, we are finding fewer men with aggressive prostate cancer that has spread. That is a good sign but we still need to do a better job of education, particularly in the minority populations.’’

Reservations are requested for the screenings, although walk-in appointments will be available. To register, visit www.genesishealth.com. Click on Classes and Events. The keyword is Prostate. Or call Genesis On Call at (563) 421-2000 or 800-383-2575.

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