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The Major League Baseball has strong links to prostate cancer to encourage families and men to make sure they take good care of themselves and that they do not have a silent killer.
For a long time, I have talked a lot about the disease about prostate cancer and, as we approach Father's Day, I would like to give you an update on my journey.
I've confused people throughout the years because I've never had treatment for my cancer. A number of people who are very dissatisfied with me – including medical experts – feel that I am careless, careless and I create danger for others by encouraging what they consider to be reckless or dangerous behavior.
Many people live in a community where the culture in doctors is that if a cancer is detected, it must be treated immediately. In addition, many patients hear the word "cancer" panic and seek treatment immediately.
I want to share with you some things, including all the new information I have just received over the last few weeks about what is happening with my cancer.
Prostate cancer, some skin cancers and breast cancer are different from many other cancers in that there are different genetic makeup of cancers with different levels of risk and consequences.
Medical researchers now know that almost 40% of people with prostate cancer have an extremely slow-growing cancer with which they will die and not. The problem today is that we do not know who is part of that 40%, so we need a process called "active monitoring". This process was originally called "watchful waiting".
If you seem to fit the profile of a person with early-stage cancer who, at least, does not seem dangerous at first, you can validate it over time by performing biopsies and, more recently, MRIs.
Since 2006, I have had 12 biopsies and, I think, four MRIs. I am on a schedule that has been adjusted over time, my cancer has shown no significant growth over these years.
The same thing is happening now – and this is no publicity at all – with medical research on breast cancer, where some types of early-stage breast cancer are not considered life-threatening, but are strongly on the safe side. -treaty. There are doctors who dedicate their lives in the field of breast cancer to trying to make it clear that in many cases, treatment is not necessary and that the breast cancer equivalent of 39, active surveillance is required.
Other people have extremely dangerous breast cancer, just like others have extremely dangerous prostate cancer.
With regard to prostate cancer, there is a different rating scale from the one you probably had at stage I but IV for other cancers. That's what's called a Gleason score and it goes 6, 7 and beyond. The higher the number, the worse for you, the lower the number, the better. People who are Gleason 6 and a lot of Gleason 7 are good candidates for active surveillance.
With prostate cancer, it's important not to panic. The Prostate Cancer Foundation has a very good guide in clear English on what you need to know if your prostate cancer is diagnosed. If you, a family member or friend is diagnosed with prostate cancer and you feel upset or anxious, read this guide and you'll have a better idea of what you should do.
As for the people who feel that I have been reckless, I am only respectfully disagreeing. I was very careful about how I handled the situation and I'm not going to make a mistake.
I had an MRI in April at the UCLA Medical Center and a biopsy in mid-May. My MRI showed no signs of dangerous cancer and the biopsy found what she had discovered over the years, namely a minimal cancer of very low grade – Gleason score 6.
The protocol is that I went from initial tests every six months, once a year, every 18 months, to a two-year cycle – and now I'm on a 30-month cycle. So in two and a half years, unless something bad happens in the meantime, I'll check again.
I want you to know that as patients, you and I are lay people. We do not have medical knowledge. I am terrible in science. But I was very motivated. I read medical journals, not a blog that knows, but who. I have to read a glossary of medical terms as I read to understand what the researchers say, but I want to be as competent as possible.
That's what I want to encourage you to do. Do not try to tell a doctor what to do – not at all. The doctor has a superior knowledge. He or she has spent many years in school. But they are not God.
You must manage your own health care and you must be your own lawyer. Prepare yourself with knowledge and do not just enter like a sheep, doing everything you are told.
I encourage you with your wallet to be a smart consumer. I also encourage you, with your health, to be a wise consumer.
There is an old saying that "you want to keep dad in the game" and that's how you do it. If your husband, father, boyfriend or anything else has not been verified and is over 50, the first step is to check that you are in good health.
If you discover that you have prostate cancer, you must know what to do next – and this may not involve treatment.
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