BUFFALO, N.Y. — Dexter King, the youngest son of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., died yesterday of prostate cancer. Roswell Park is urging men to get their regular screening. Especially, Black men. It can help save your life.
"You only get one chance. You can't hit reset and do it over again. This is the opportunity to take care of yourself. Please, man up," says Richard Satterwhite.
The year was 2007. Richard Satterwhite had just received the shocking news.
"I will say and can say that women see doctors regularly; they're conditioned to. Men aren't. The attitude for men is, if it's not broken, don't fix it."
Little did he know that going to that regular check-up wound up saving his life. Satterwhite found out he had Prostate Cancer.
"Men of color disproportionately are affected by the disease and also have a higher mortality rate. A lot of it has to do with not having a health care education," Satterwhite says.
According to Roswell, one in six Black men will be diagnosed with Prostate Cancer and are two times more likely to die from it. Some early symptoms include increased urination, difficulty urinating, or a weak flow.
We all know health is important, especially about certain aspects of being a man. A prostate exam will not be the initial test many men think of. According to Dr. John Deberry, a Urologist at Roswell Park, the initial screening is a Prostate-Specific Antigen Blood test (PSA). It measures the number of prostate-specific antigens in your blood.
"If you had a PSA, the upper limit of normal is considered 4. As your PSA approaches three, you should be more concerned about your condition. If your PSA is three or less, then we will continue to monitor you closely in case your PSA goes up. Just because you have an abnormal PSA doesn't mean you have Prostate cancer. It just means you need to be checked more carefully," says Dr. Deberry.
It's encouraged to start screening as young as 40 years old. Satterwhite says he got worried after seeing a TV commercial about Prostate cancer.
"If caught early, it's 99% treatable," says Satterwhite.
This is why Satterwhite shares his story with us, and thousands of others. He became A Roswell Cancer Coach and started the Man-Up Organization. It's a non-profit dedicated to informing and promoting men in their prostate cancer fight.
"Trust me, the doctor isn't trying to get a date. The doctors are trying to take care of you."