How wives suffer too

WIVES of men with prostate cancer find their own health suffering as a result of their husband’s illness, researchers have found.

More than 47,000 men are diagnosed with prostate cancer in Britain every year, and the disease kills 11,800 annually. But the impact of the disease on the tens of thousands of wives of these men has never been properly documented.

The new study suggests nearly half of wives see their health suffer as their husbands go through treatment.

The researchers said: ‘The wives try not to show vulnerability to the husband or the children, because they would like to appear as strong and caring people. Some of the wives feel aloneness, and it is challenging … to talk about the disease with their husbands and others.’

The Danish researchers interviewed 56 women whose husbands were being treated for prostate cancer.

Researcher Jeanne Avlastenok said: ‘They gradually developed a real fear of being alone, even within the relationship. They felt they had to be strong, which meant they couldn’t share the burden of the illness.’