The Empowerment Network, Inc., a St. Louis-based prostate advocacy, awareness, and educational organization, has been urging men age 40+ to get a PSA test. Prostate cancer is treatable if detected early, a message recently shared by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin.
He said “it was like a sock in the gut” when he was diagnosed with prostate cancer in December. The 70-year-old Austin was admitted to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center on Dec. 22 and underwent surgery to treat the cancer. He was hospitalized again on Feb. 11, 2024 to address a bladder issue.
Days before being readmitted to the hospital at the beginning of a press conference, Austin made an appeal for men to be screened for prostate cancer.
“I’m here with a clear message to other men, especially older men: Get screened. Get your regular checkups,” he said.
“Prostate cancer has a glass jaw. If your doctor can spot it, they can treat it and beat it.”
Joe Madison, an activist and radio icon who starred in the classroom, as a student journalist, and football player at Washington University, was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2021. He passed on Jan. 31, 2024.
Dr. Michael Whalen, vice chair of the department of urology and associate professor of urology at George Washington Medical Faculty Associates, says Black men should be especially be willing to be screened.
“African American men have not only a higher incidence of prostate cancer, but also higher risk of death from prostate cancer,” he told Yahoo Health.
“All men over the age of 55 with life expectancy greater than 10 years should discuss prostate cancer screening with their primary care doctor. There are some men at higher risk, and they should begin prostate cancer screening at age 40.”
He added that a family history of not only prostate cancer, but also breast, ovarian or pancreatic cancer may mean it’s a good idea to test earlier.
“These other cancers may be associated with gene mutations that predispose to prostate cancer as well,” Whalen explains.
Mellve Shahid, Sr., a 16-year prostate cancer survivor and Empowerment Network founder, says emotional and mental support to men during their road to recovery is also essential,
“For the most part, medical science does an outstanding job addressing the causes, symptoms, and treatments for prostate cancer. We need just as much emphasis on the need for emotional support or a support group after the disease has been eradicated,” he said.
“Just as important is the wounded or broken human spirit within the person who has carried the disease. These men need support through faith, hope, and love and the greatest of them is the love needed to heal and become whole again.”
The Empowerment Network includes more than 300 prostate cancer survivors who share their stories, and a Prayer Team is often with prostate cancer patients during the early morning hours at the hospital on the day of their prostatectomy providing encourage
An “After Surgery Kit” of personal hygiene package is given to patients and follow-up visits and phone calls are made with the new survivors to ensure them they are not alone in their life beyond prostate cancer.
Additionally, the Prostate Cancer Support Group meets on the second Saturday of every month where survivors gather. Speakers include life coaches, psychologists as well as medical professionals with the latest prostate cancer information.
“The real treasure we see at The Empowerment Network is in the faces of family members when their fathers, grandfathers, and uncles survive this disease and go back to living a life of normalcy and having social interaction with their family members and friends,” Shahid says.
For more information about The Empowerment Network, call 314-385-0998 or visit www.TenStl.org.
