| Location | Los Angeles |
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Now that I have your attention let me revise that. If all went well with my surgery on Friday I should now be able to say, "I HAD cancer".
Last January, at the age of 45, I was diagnosed with prostate cancer. So some of you are probably saying, "Holy Shit, I didn't know Brad was that old!" while others are saying, "Prostate Cancer?! WTF!?That's for old men." However you may look at it, the fact remains that one in six of us men will get prostate cancer by the time we're 80 and while it is highly treatable when detected early, it is also the third leading cancer cause of death for men. So it appears that I am one of the lucky ones. I'm not looking for sympathy or sensationalism here but rather to share that luck with you.
As I lay in my hospital room recovering from the surgery, ironically I was treated to the tribute concert to Johnny Ramone who died at the age of 55 after a long battle with prostate cancer. When I was diagnosed I was told that, untreated, I would probably have about 10 more years. So what I take away from this is that Johnny died and I will probably live because of one drastic difference... I was diagnosed unusually early. Like Johnny, and like many of you, I am an artist. We don't generally have insurance, we don't get sick much, so we don't go to the Doctor. On top of this, men aren't routinely screened for Prostate Cancer until 50 or 55. It was because of my wife Kat's health insurance through work that I decided to indulge myself the luxury of having a physical when I turned 45 and discovered my condition and was able to do something about it while there was still time.
So this is why I'm sharing this information with you my friend. Because like me you probably have never even thought you would hear the words Prostate Cancer until you were a very old geezer...but given the odd's, one in six, it is likely that one or more of you reading this already have it. A simple PSA blood test is all it takes and it might make the difference between having another lifetime to enjoy or having a statue in Hollywood Forever Cemetery. And who knows, you might just meet a nurse that you could go for...gabba gabba hey...
xxx
bd
Last January, at the age of 45, I was diagnosed with prostate cancer. So some of you are probably saying, "Holy Shit, I didn't know Brad was that old!" while others are saying, "Prostate Cancer?! WTF!?That's for old men." However you may look at it, the fact remains that one in six of us men will get prostate cancer by the time we're 80 and while it is highly treatable when detected early, it is also the third leading cancer cause of death for men. So it appears that I am one of the lucky ones. I'm not looking for sympathy or sensationalism here but rather to share that luck with you.
As I lay in my hospital room recovering from the surgery, ironically I was treated to the tribute concert to Johnny Ramone who died at the age of 55 after a long battle with prostate cancer. When I was diagnosed I was told that, untreated, I would probably have about 10 more years. So what I take away from this is that Johnny died and I will probably live because of one drastic difference... I was diagnosed unusually early. Like Johnny, and like many of you, I am an artist. We don't generally have insurance, we don't get sick much, so we don't go to the Doctor. On top of this, men aren't routinely screened for Prostate Cancer until 50 or 55. It was because of my wife Kat's health insurance through work that I decided to indulge myself the luxury of having a physical when I turned 45 and discovered my condition and was able to do something about it while there was still time.
So this is why I'm sharing this information with you my friend. Because like me you probably have never even thought you would hear the words Prostate Cancer until you were a very old geezer...but given the odd's, one in six, it is likely that one or more of you reading this already have it. A simple PSA blood test is all it takes and it might make the difference between having another lifetime to enjoy or having a statue in Hollywood Forever Cemetery. And who knows, you might just meet a nurse that you could go for...gabba gabba hey...
xxx
bd
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