Getting Creative for Men's Health
- British Columbia, Canada’s Prostate Cancer Foundation is targeting men of a certain age to step into some new undies designed to make their lives a little bit easier while getting checked for prostate cancer.
- The "Checkup Briefs" underwear campaign, which features front and rear access on the special skivvies, launched early this week in honor of Prostate Cancer Awareness Month.
- Screening is simple and consists of a prostate-specific antigen (PSA) blood test and a digital rectal exam to feel the prostate gland.
- Prostate cancer is the number one most-diagnosed cancer amongst men in the U.S. Experts say that early-stage prostate cancer patients can often achieve a “cure” or chronic remission with localized treatments.
In this specific case, British Columbia’s Prostate Cancer Foundation is targeting men of a certain age to step into some new undies designed to make their lives a little bit easier while getting checked for prostate cancer.
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But there’s one catch.
To score a pair of these unique briefs, men first need to book a prostate screening and then leave a comment on Prostate Cancer BC’s Instagram page.
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Getting Checked for Prostate Cancer
There comes a time in every man's life when he has to consider screening for prostate cancer.
So where to even begin? The guidelines for screening depend largely on your risk for the diseaseand that's based on several factors including family history, genetics, age, and race.
When Should I Get Tested for Prostate Cancer?
Screening is simple and consists of a prostate-specific antigen (PSA) blood test and a digital rectal exam to feel the prostate gland. "It's slightly uncomfortable but painless, and takes less than 30 seconds," says Dr. Edwin Posadas, Director of Translational Oncology and the Medical Director of the Urologic Oncology Program at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center.
"The amount of information that is gained from that is tremendous, and it can be a life-and-death type decision that is made," adds Dr. Posadas, who has detected prostate cancer in patients via a rectal exam alone.
Men are notoriously bad about their health and so we are here to tell you, if you are male and between the ages of 55 and 70, or have a family history of cancer, make an appointment to go talk to your doctor about getting screened for this disease.
Dr. Yung Lyou, a medical oncologist at City of Hope, tells SurvivorNet, "Unfortunately, prostate cancer is the No. 1 most diagnosed cancer amongst men in the U.S. Early-stage prostate cancer patients can often achieve a 'cure' or chronic remission with localized treatments such as surgery or concurrent hormone and radiation treatment,” he says.
“However, when the disease becomes metastatic, it is often not curable and this can happen if patients delay diagnosis and treatment. Cancer doesn't wait for anyone or anything even during a pandemic, so it is important to undergo prostate cancer screening if your doctor recommends it."
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