Group urges awareness of 'silent killer'

WASILLA -- Doctors say any man who lives long enough will get it. They say there's no way to prevent it or reduce its risk. They say it's diagnosed once every 2.6 minutes and kills every 13 minutes.

But they also say there's hope. Us Too, a nationwide organization for prostate cancer education and support, met for the first time in the Valley last Wednesday at Valley Hospital Medical Center. Speakers at the first meeting included Dale Snelson, a prostate cancer survivor and founder of the local chapter and Dr. Greg Lund, a local urologist.

The primary message of Wednesday's meeting was that early detection of the disease is critical.

"Don't wait," Snelson said. "Don't even hesitate, because every minute can count."

The most common and effective means of detection is currently a PSA, or prostate-specific antigen, level test. This test measures the amount of the antigen, which can leak from a cancerous prostate into the bloodstream. More antigen means greater likelihood of prostate cancer. However, the PSA test alone cannot absolutely confirm the presence of cancer, so other tests are usually conducted on patients with a high PSA count.

Professional tests are necessary because this variety of cancer does not have obvious symptoms. "Prostate cancer is a silent killer," Snelson said. "It really sneaks up on you and then, wham, you're in trouble."

Lund agreed, saying that prostate cancer is slower-growing than many other cancers. "It may take years for the cancer to take effect," Lund said. "It's extremely sneaky."

Early detection will allow better and more effective treatment of the cancer, Lund said. "If you're able to detect it at an early stage, whole new realms of treatment will open up to you."

Lund, who has spent 10 years dealing with prostate cancer patients in the Valley, said he was very enthusiastic about the potential of the new organization.

"It's probably overdue that we have a chapter of Us Too in the Valley," he said. "It's a wonderful thing to be able to come together like this in the form of a support group."

Lund said prostate cancer is the leading cancer in men, and the second most common cancerous killer of men.

Today's adult male has anywhere from a 1-in-4 to a 1-in-11 chance of developing prostate cancer, depending on individual risk factors. Factors such as heredity and race and smoking can help raise risk levels, Lund said.

Lund said one of the myths of prostate cancer is that men often have it, but rarely die from it.

"People do die of it," he said. "I see people here in the Valley all the time who die of it."

Treatment options for prostate cancer are often limited, Lund said. Prostate tumors do not respond to chemotherapy and are only somewhat responsive to radiation therapy, so surgery is one of the only viable solutions, he said.

According to Lund, there's no real way to prevent the risk of prostate cancer, unless the aging process can somehow be halted. "If you're going to get older, you're going to risk prostate cancer," he said.

Lund's office holds prostate cancer screenings annually, during the third week of September. The screening is free, while the blood test may carry a fee of $10. Last year, Lund said, his office treated about 150 men in two days.

The success of the annual drive, however, is hindered by the fact that many men today tend to take a somewhat careless approach to their personal health, Lund said.

"We men aren't too good about our health in general," he said. "Women are much better at it."

Snelson agreed with Lund's assertion, saying men don't get medical treatment as often as they should. "I don't know if it's masochism, if it's testosterone, or what, but we often don't seek the attention we need," he said.

Lund said most of the calls responding to his annual testing drive are from wives.

For more information about the new local chapter of Us Too, call Dale Snelson at 746-0384.

Contact Daniel Spoth at daniel.spoth@frontiersman.com.