“The MRI eventually showed a tiny spot in my prostate gland. That spot was cancer.”
This Prostate Cancer Awareness Month in September 2022, Australian Prostate Cancer is fighting to make sure our world-class medical advancements can help and treat anyone touched prostate cancer.
Prostate cancer is now the most commonly diagnosed cancer, only recently surpassing breast cancer.
A staggering 18,000 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2022, and 3,000 men will lose their fight to this deadly disease.
Paul Flynn, CEO of Australian Prostate Cancer, knows all too well the impact of prostate cancer.
Paul was first diagnosed with prostate cancer two years ago when he visited his GP to check what he thought was a bladder infection.
“I was referred to a urologist who suggested Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) due to my family history of prostate cancer,” says Paul.
“The MRI eventually showed a tiny spot in my prostate gland. That spot was cancer.”
Paul decided to monitor it on the advice of his specialists, but 15 months later another life-changing MRI showed the cancer has developed and required immediate treatment.
With various treatment options available to Paul, he decided to undergo Stereotactic Body Radiotherapy (SBRT) at The Royal Adelaide Hospital.
SBRT is a form of extreme hypofractionation where the entire course is completed in about five fractions over a week. Each sessions takes 15-60 minutes, depending on the technology used.
SBRT builds on technological advances in image guidance, with robust quality assurance in place thanks to research.
While his treatment was successful, the daily challenges of prostate cancer have taken an emotional toll on Paul.
“There have been times when I felt that it would be very easy to let that impending sense of doom overtake me because of my diagnosis and the people in my life who have died from cancer,” says Paul.
“But with my treatment now successfully completed, I know there is hope for people like me diagnosed with prostate cancer undertaking their own journey.”
It’s not too late to donate! Support lifesaving prostate cancer research and donate online here.
Shared by Vas Comblas
By Australian Prostate Cancer (The Hospital Research Foundation Group)