As we approach Prostate Cancer Awareness Month (1 – 31 March 2011) I felt the need to share with you my experiences and memories of what this means to me.
   Christmas Day can have a multitude of meaning and significance. For me and my family it brings back memories of my late father-in-law Alfie Jacobs, who sadly lost his long battle with Prostate Cancer on Christmas Day 1992 at St Joseph’s Hospice in Mare Street, Hackney, after several months of being treated with dignity, care and sensitivity by the wonderful staff there.
   Alfie had become quite a character at St Joseph’s and his passing after the Morning Service, just as the preparations for the Christmas Day lunch were under way on such a usually joyous day, had a great impact on staff and patients alike.
   Alfie was a licensed London taxi driver for many years and worked nights, mainly on the Mile End and Bishopsgate ranks. When I decided to go on the Knowledge 35 years ago, it was to Alfie that I turned for advice and direction. He was a truly great mentor.
   Like so many of Alfie’s generation, he served his King and Country and had focussed his life on providing for his family by working long, arduous hours in his taxi while often neglecting his own health. It was a great shock when in 1983 he was diagnosed with prostate cancer.
   Back in the early 80s, the simple PSA blood test was not widely available in the UK and the symptoms he may have been suffering with, which may have indicated a problem with his prostate, were probably put to the back of his mind in the hope that they would go away. He would suffer in silence, thinking that most men of a certain age had waterworks problems. Alfie was in total denial of what his body was telling him. Sounds familiar?
   After various surgical and medical procedures at the Middlesex Hospital in Mortimer Street, the medics were able to stabilise his condition and give him a reasonable quality of life for several years before he had to succumb to palliative care at St Joseph’s.
   Alfie had been under the care of the Urology Department at the Middlesex and treated by a young registrar, who was dynamic and sensitive to the needs of the patient and relatives alike. This was where I became aware of young pioneering doctor, Roger Kirby. His manner made such an impact on me that I knew should I need ever need any Urological treatment in the future, this would be the kind of doctor I would wish to treat me. Dr Kirby’s directness and informative dialogue were both refreshing and illuminating.
   During the intervening years, it wasn’t difficult to keep tabs on Dr Kirby, indeed it seemed that any advances, comments or opinions that the media needed an expert opinion on in regard to men’s health and in particular prostate related conditions, were aimed at

By David Burnetts (S43)

and if left untreated, can lead to
dire complications as the prostate gland increases in size and causes
obstruction to the urine flow. This has caused me considerable problems in my day to day activities as a London taxi driver, as I have to literally plan my day out to coincide with frequent toilet stops, sometimes as frequently as every two hours.
   I’m sure I am not the only one who finds it difficult to find somewhere safe and convenient to park to answer the call of nature without coming back to the cab to discover it has been decorated with a PCN! The lack of toilet facilities for taxi drivers needs to be urgently addressed (see Call Sign January 2011 and Dave Raymond’s (F56) problems as a diabetic on medication needing toilet facilities at sometimes very short notice).
   There are surgical and medical treatments available for BPH and in the interim I have opted for medication, which will hopefully reduce the size of my prostate. But in time I will need a surgical procedure known as TransUrethral Resection of the Prostate or a TURP, where part of the prostate tissue is cut away to decrease the pressure on the Urethra.
   When my PSA rose further in August 2010, an ultra-sound examination of my bladder and prostate showed that I had a Polyp in my bladder (although this had nothing to do with the raised PSA), which thankfully was removed within a few days of discovery. Unfortunately, this was found to be malignant, but with regular surveillance I am now on the road to recovery - which beats struggling along the Euston Road on a wet Friday evening! As you can see, I haven’t lost my cab driver’s warped sense of humour!
   Had I not been having regular PSA blood tests, this tumour would not have been detected, as I hadn’t had any symptoms associated with bladder cancer, so I am truly thankful to the medics for their diligence.
   I hope that by relating my own experiences, it will encourage you all to go to your GP and request a PSA blood test, if only for your peace of mind, but which could turn out to be a life-saver! As a final thought, do it for your family as well as for yourself…

© David Burnetts (S43)