CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — More than three million men in the United States are currently living with prostate cancer.
Caring for a loved one with prostate cancer can be both emotionally and physically demanding.
Caregivers often find themselves not only providing emotional support but also managing medical appointments and assuming additional household responsibilities.
FHO PROSTATE CANCER AND ROLE OF CAREGIVERS
We had the pleasure of speaking with Dr. Daniel George about what he has seen regarding access to healthcare in both rural and urban areas.
“The truth is, is that you know, all men are at risk for prostate cancer, but there are certain subgroups that are at even greater risk for prostate cancer: men with a family history, men who are black or of African ancestry, and in men who have a midlife PSA that’s elevated. And what I mean by that is, we recommend a PSA check between ages 45 and 50. This is a simple blood test that your primary care doctor can order for you. And if it’s above 1.6, that’s not actually elevated, but it’s a stratifying factor, said Dr. Daniel George, Medical Oncologist and Professor, Duke University School of Medicine. ”
“We really need to recognize that the best health care is preventive Health care and preventive by preventing cancer to get out of control, and screening is just that to catch things early. So I think, you know, some of it may be fear of like, gosh, if I get if they find cancer, what are they going to do to me? And I’m going to lose control. But the truth is, here too, we’ve changed tremendously. In my career, I’ve seen now what we call active surveillance, or not treating prostate cancer that is not aggressive, but using it as a way of continuing to screen for more aggressive cancer, said George, Medical Oncologist and Professor, Duke University School of Medicine said Dr. George, Medical Oncologist and Professor, Duke University School of Medicine.”
Dr. Daniel George also focuses on the role that caregivers take while caring for a loved one battling Prostate Cancer. Here is what he had to say on navigating through it all.
“It’s the responsible thing to do. If, during this holiday season, you want to say, you know, what can I do for others? This is, taking care of yourself is one of the best things you can do to help others. You’ll be in a position to help them if you’re healthy, and if we catch things early, you know, we can, we can really prevent, you know, you being, you know, necessarily a long-term patient. That’s really the goal is, you know, to be able to catch this disease, so it’s not a long-term disease, said Dr. George, Medical Oncologist and Professor, Duke University School of Medicine.”
“20, 27% of our population is black or African American. And it’s really important for us, you know, as healthcare providers, to make sure we can connect with people of all backgrounds and and this is really important, I’m sure, at Vanderbilt and in Memphis and and, you know, Chattanooga and all your big cities they’ve got, they’ve got the resources to do that, Navigators and other folks that can be real connectors. So trust is a thing, you know, we don’t take for granted. We build it. You know, trust the health system if you get cancer, said Dr. George, Medical Oncologist and Professor, Duke University School of Medicine.”
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The main message Dr. Daniel wants patients to understand is that they still control their healthcare, and shared decision-making is part of the process when dealing with cancer.
He also emphasizes that his patients can choose what they want to do or not do.
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