Posted 12/15/2006 3:03 AM (GMT 0)
My father was diagnosed with prostate cancer at the age of 60. It was successfully treated with radiation ... Twenty-two years later (last December), at the age of 59, I was diagnosed ... and my brother, 56, just learned that he has prostate cancer. So family history is an increased risk factor ... Studies show that men whose fathers or brothers had prostate cancer are, on average, diagnosed six to seven years earlier than men with no family history of this disease. Men with three or more relatives with prostate cancer have a 35% to 45% risk of developing prostate cancer. And a man whose father had prostate cancer before age 60 has a 20% chance of developing prostate cancer, compared to just 8% for men without such a history ... So spread the word and make sure that your siblings or children are tested early.
I had laparoscopic surgery in March, and my seven-month checkup resulted in an undetectable PSA ... my brother had a PSA of 3.1, no symptoms, when he was diagnosed. His family doctor gave him a clean bill of health, but because I had educated him about PSA scores, he insisted on a referral to a urologist who decided to do a biopsy because of the family history.