HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2000-10-04, Page 6PAGE 6. THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 4, 2000.
Cancer survivor shares story
By Margaret Stapleton
V/ingham Advance-Times
No Big Deal? is the name of a
drama about the experiences of men
with prostate cancer and their spous
es. Currently on tour across the
province. No Big Deal? comes to the
Huron Country Playhouse at Grand
Bend on Thursday, Oct. 5.
For John Elliott of Blyth, owner of
Elliott Insurance, the name of the
drama is an apt one and describes his
own experience with prostate cancer.
“It really is no big deal,” says Elliott,
but then he.is one of the lucky ones:
early detection has meant he is com
pletely cancer free.
“No Big Deal is a good title
because men are traditionally reluc
tant to seek out medical assistance in
that area,” Elliott says in a recent
interview at his Blyth insurance
office. In fact, if it weren’t for his
son’s experience, Elliott’s cancer
might have gone undetected until it
was too late.
WAKF-UP CALL
Six years ago, Elliott’s son Rick,
then in his early thirties, was diag
nosed with testicular cancer, increas
ingly common in young men.
At his son’s urging and at the sug
gestion of Dr. J. Sales, a urologist
surgeon, who is a consulting special
ist at Wingham and District Hospital,
John Elliott went for a prostate spe
cific antigen (PSA) test.
Always active, Elliott remembers
thinking at the time that he was in
perfect health. But when the test
came back with elevated readings
indicating the possibility of the pres
ence of cancer Elliott was surprised.
But he needn’t have been, prostate
cancer is known as a “silent killer”, a
disease which produces no symp
toms until the final stages and by that
time it often is too late.
Elliott also quickly learned that
prostate cancer is not an “old man’s
disease” and is striking younger men
all the time. At the time of his first
PSA test, Elliott was 54.
DIAGNOSIS
The prostate gland is found only in
males, a walnut-sized organ situated
under the bladder and directly above
the scrotum. The prostate makes the
substance used to carry sperm.
After his PSA test, Elliott was
referred to Dr. Sales, who quickly
had him booked into a London hos
pital for a biopsy.
However, when the biopsy failed
to show up any sign of cancer, Dr.
Sales advised Elliott to wait six
months and then have another PSA
test. After his initial test, Elliott read
enough to know that if a man’s lev
els are up, he should be watched
closely. He went back for another
test in four months and this time, his
PSA levels were up yet again.
A second biopsy was performed
and this time cancer was found to be
present in his prostate. This leads
him to suspect that in younger men,
prostate cancer can be fast growing.
During a consultation with Dr.
Sales, the specialist laid out all of
options. “He told me, ‘We can watch
it. We can treat it or we can remove
it,” says Elliott.
When Elliott asked Dr. Sales what
he would recommend, he told him
that given his relatively young age,
he would recommend removing the
prostate. However, he also was quite
plain in what it probably would
mean: a loss of his sexual function
ing.
Even though Elliott was alone in
the specialist’s office that day, he
quickly made the decision to have
his diseased prostate removed. “I
wanted to stay around,” he says sim
ply and removal seemed to provide
him with his best chance. It was a
decision his wife would support
fully.
The call came on a Friday to say
his surgery had been booked for
Monday. The surgery went well and
he was soon home and back to work.
That was five years ago July. He
required no follow-up treatment and
has a check-up every six months. To
this day, he is cancer free and leads a
full and happy life, enjoying horse
back riding and even taking up play
ing softball again after a hiatus of
several years.
EARLY DETECTION
Today, Elliott is convinced that
early detection and the skill of Dr.
Sales, whom he calls “the best”,
saved his life.
He has become something of an
advocate for men’s health and is
more than willing to talk to anyone
about his experience.
“It really is no big deal,” he says.
“Get to the doctor and have a rectal
exam (a doctor can feel if the
prostate is enlarged) and have your
PSA checked. For men over 50, it’s a
must.”
With the baby boomer generation
entering their 50s, Elliott believes
the incidence of prostate cancer will
do nothing but rise in the coming
years. The statistics bear him out:
42,500 North American men die
each year from prostate cancer and
the numbers of men diagnosed each
year continue to climb.
People must take the initiative for
their own health, he believes. If you
want to know something, ask your
doctor; if you haven’t heard back
about a test, call your doctor.
Ironically, Rick and John’s bouts
with cancer were not the only ones
the family has faced in the last five
years. Bev, John’s wife and Rick’s
mother, underwent surgery and treat
ments last year for thyroid cancer.
But all three have been given a clean
bill of health.
“We’re a family of survivors,” says
John, but he notes that his second
son, as well as his brothers, now are
watched closely.
Does he have any regrets about his
decision five years ago to have his
prostate removed? Not a one.
“There’s a lot of life after it,” he
says. “It really is no big deal.
Aiding the campaign
Wingham’s Sacred Heart School Principal Mary Brown hap
pily accepted a $500 donation from Dennis McGlynn, Grand
Knight of the Wingham Knights of Columbus, Sept. 26. The
money will be used for new playground equipment.
JIM FLOYD FOR
DISTRICT 3 TRUSTEE
(Avon Maitland District School Board
District 3 - Grey, Brussels, Howick, Turnberry,
Wingham & Morris)
FOR Cutting costs without closing schools
FOR Allowing students to return
FOR Excepting students moving into area
FOR Developing programs to encourage more
students to stay in school longer
FOR Encouraging young to return to school
AGAINST Unneeded closing of schools to cut costs
FOR More control of operations by trustees with full
input from public
Call Jim Floyd at 527-1583 for information.
Craigs celebrate golden day
Golden couple
Whitely and Benjamin Fezill in
Kinkora.
The Craigs keep busy as members
of the seniors club and Foresters.
They also enjoy bus trips, euchre,
gardening and farming.
Charles Smith
Your Candidate for School Trustee
Area 2 Avon Maitland District School Board
It has been a special time for William and Isabelle Craig of
Morris Twp., as they recently marked their golden anniver-
Saty. (Vicky Bremner photo)
William and Isabelle Craig of
Morris Twp. have celebrated 50
years of marriage.
The daughter of the late Mr. and
Mrs. James Clark of RR2, Brussels
and her groom, the son of the late
Mr. and Mrs. Robert Craig of Blyth
were wed on Sept. 16, 1950 by Rev.
Alex J. Simpson at Knox
Presbyterian Church, Cranbrook.
Following a brief honeymoon they
moved to the farm where they still
live, which has been in the family
since April 16, 1861.
They raised five children, Ross,
Nancy, who passed away in 1999,
Murray, Roger and Mary. Their fam
ily today also includes six grandchil
dren.
On their anniversary, they were
guests at the wedding of Christine
Supporting local projects
in a global context
Call 1-800-5656 USC
to pledge your support today!
56 Sparks Street, Ottawa ON KIP 5B1
www.usc-canada.org
Announcing My Candidacy for
-DEPUTY MAYOR-
OF HURON EAST
• Lifelong Resident and
Farmer in Tuckersmith
• 14 Years Municipal Experience with
Rural and Urban Involvement
“Your Support Would Be Greatly Appreciated”
BOB BROADFOOT
519-522-1498
Charles Smith is:
- a lifetime resident of McKillop Twp., Huron County
- owner manager of Boilersmith Ltd, a company
which competes successfully at the international level
a professional mechanica] engineer, (P. Eng.)
Charles Smith supports: good education
Your community school
Small town and rural Ontario
Contact Charles Smith
Box 669, Seaforth, Ont. N0K 1W0
Bus: 527-0600, Fax: 527-0150, Res. 527-0552
email: charles@boilersmith.com