Cancer patient queries support for men’s health
When Don Robertson went to his doctor with a sore rib, he had no idea he had advanced prostate cancer.
The cancer had already spread to his bones, which had caused a fractured rib. A scan revealed the slow growing cancer, which began in his prostate, had metastasised from his skull to his hips.
Robertson said that by the time he discovered the cancer in August 2017, it was too late.
Treatment was management through chemotherapy and drugs instead of a cure.
The experience has left him questioning whether there is enough support in the system for men’s health.
He said it felt like men were the ‘‘forgotten species’’ when it came to health, falling through the cracks without regular screening programmes, unlike women, who were frequently reminded by doctors and promotional materials to have health checks, including breast and cervical screening.
As a fit, healthy 64-year-old when he received the cancer diagnosis, he said he only went to the doctor when something was wrong, which would mean less chance of regular prompts by his GP to have a health check.
Prostate cancer often shows no symptoms. He also had no family history of prostate cancer.
‘‘I have heard of so many guys who have had prostate cancer. Not all of them are metastatic but if you don’t go to the GP regularly because you don’t have any other problems, we don’t tend to go for a checkup.’’
He said encouragement of regular checks including prostate, heart and diabetes in men would not go astray.
Robertson said men needed to think about an annual health check similar to getting a warrant of fitness for their car.
‘‘Give yourself a present and go get checked up every year.’’
In New Zealand, prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men with more than 3500 diagnosed annually and more than 650 deaths each year.
Nelson urologist Andy Malcolm said there was a system for men’s health but ‘‘men don’t always avail themselves of that’’.
‘‘Is men’s health overlooked or do men overlook their health?’’
He said that in a health system with limited resources, many groups of people could feel neglected, including Ma¯ori, who had the worst health statistics, and those with mental health issues – the highest cause of death in men under 60 is suicide. He said it was about having a ‘‘degree of personal responsibility in society’’.
‘‘Society also has to help those who can’t help themselves very well. It is really hard to be everything for everybody.’’
But Malcolm understood that many men shared in Robertson’s frustrations. ‘‘There is no doubt cancers have been missed by GPs who have not wanted to screen or have not offered the tests but you can’t criticise them, because there is no compelling reason that says they should test.’’
A Ministry of Health spokesperson said there was no national screening programme in place for prostate cancer because there was not a reliable enough test for men who did not have symptoms.
The spokesperson said the harm outweighed the potential benefits of an organised programme, including unreliable results in the PSA (prostate-specific antigen) blood test causing mental distress.
An elevated PSA, a protein created by cells in the prostate gland, did not mean that a person had prostate cancer and a low PSA did not mean that cancer was excluded, the ministry said.
If a person did not have any symptoms, including weak urine flow, a flow that stops and starts, or pain during urination, getting a prostate check was a decision that should be based on patient circumstances, including age, family history and personal preferences.
‘‘Give yourself a present and go get checked up every year.’’
Don Robertson