Country Music Singer Eddie Montgomery, 59, Only Discovered Prostate Cancer Because He Took His Son To The Doctor For An Injury

When his son broke his shoulder in three different places in a 2010 accident, Montgomery, known for the hit songs “Something to Be Proud Of,” “Lucky Man,” and “Roll with Me,” informed the doctor of the pain he had been having himself.

“I’d been trying to exercise, get back to losing weight again, and was there talking to the bone specialist telling him how I’d been hurting in my hip,” Montgomery, whose dad passed away from prostate cancer at age 52, told Country Weekly, according to Taste of Country.

RELATED: 'Dark Knight' Actor Colin McFarlane Caught Prostate Cancer Early and Is Now Being Monitored Why Some Men Don't Need Treatment Right Away

It was when the bone specialist took an X-ray of the singer’s hip and noticed a dark area on the scans. Montgomery was then urged to get checked by a urologist.

Montgomery, who admitted to only going to the doctor when needed when he was younger, was shocked to learn he had cancer, he reportedly told WYKT in an earlier interview.

He even told Coping magazine that he received his cancer diagnosis on his 47th birthday, something which “freaked” him out.

“When I found out, it tore me up,” he told the magazine, adding that it was especially hard since the diagnosis came just three weeks after his wife filed for divorce.

Following surgery to remove the tumor, Montgomery was considered cancer free in January 2011.

At the time, his doctor, Dr. Thomas Kirk Slabaughn Jr., stated, “His cancer was completely excised, and he will not require further treatment for his prostate cancer in the future.

“Mr. Montgomery has benefited greatly from early detection of prostate cancer with PSA screening.”

Prostate-specific antigen (PSA) is the name of a protein secreted by the prostate gland. Men have a small amount of PSA in their blood all the time but large amounts may signal that something is brewing. When cancer cells grow, PSA spills into the blood.

A PSA test measures the level of PSA in the blood.

Montgomery, who got back on stage just one month after surgery, opened up to Coping magazine about the side effects from surgery, which included a loss of bladder control.

“You’re worried about a million thoughts. Okay, here I am going through a divorce, and I'm going to be single. And then I'm going, 'Oh God, what about my sex life?' … “For me, yep, I'm doing good.”

As he strives to enjoy life after cancer, Montgomery added, “It's the man upstairs' choice when you leave this world. And I do want to live every second of it. … I'm just going to live my life having fun.”

He said his kids showed unwavering support when he needed it most.

"My kids are heroes," he told Coping. "It's just been unbelievable how they have stepped up and not even worried about their stuff."

The Importance of Early Detection

Men with a family history of prostate cancer, like Eddie Montgomery, are at a higher risk of developing prostate cancer, so a doctor may opt to begin testing in the mid-40s.

Men of certain ethnicities who are at a higher risk of getting the disease may also want to consider screening early.  For example, the incidence of prostate cancer in African American men is 60% higher, and they are two to three times more likely to die from the disease.

RELATED: Staggeringly Higher Prostate Cancer Rates for Black & Latino Men

There's No One Definitive Symptom for Prostate Cancer, But There Are Clues

Screening is typically done with the PSA test. If a man has an elevated PSA level, he has somewhere between a 20% to 40% chance of having cancer.

The PSA test is not a perfect test, says Dr. Edwin Posadas, director of the Translational Oncology Program at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles.

The PSA test is more controversial when it comes to using it to detect prostate cancer in older men. This is because most men will develop prostate cancer at some point in their lives if they live long enough, Dr. Geoffrey Sonn, assistant professor of urology at Stanford Medicine, previously told SurvivorNet.

But most men will not die from prostate cancer.

In addition, because prostate cancer is such a slow-growing type of cancer, it is much more likely that older men will die of something other than prostate cancer.

Getting Tested If You Have A Family History of Prostate Cancer

Family history can matter a lot when it comes to prostate cancer.

“It's estimated that five to ten percent of prostate cancer can run in families,” Dr. James Brooks, Chief of Urologic Oncology at Stanford Medicine, told Survivornet.

If you have a close relative who has had prostate cancer, such as a brother or father, the risk you will develop prostate cancer in your lifetime is almost double.

If You Have a Family History of Prostate Cancer, Get Screened Early

Men with a family history tend to get prostate cancer at a younger age, so Dr. Brooks recommends getting screenedin some cases as early as age 45by having a PSA test.

Early detection can help reduce the risk of cancer spreading to other organs. The National Comprehensive Cancer Network also recommends germline genetic testing for men with high-risk prostate cancer.

But, screening can also open up a whole can of worms, finding cancers that are slow growing and may not need aggressive treatment. Still, when most men are told they have prostate cancer, they want it out. And that's understandable.

What Are Your Treatment Options?

After your care team has all of the information (PSA, prostate exam, and the results of any imaging scans), your doctor will use it to categorize your cancer into one of several groups, called risk groups.

These include:

• Low risk
• Intermediate risk
• High risk

There are several subgroups within these categories that your doctor may mention. Which risk group your cancer falls into will determine what treatment options may be best for you. Men with low-risk and very low-risk disease may be candidates for active surveillance, an approach that closely monitors the cancer for changes and helps men avoid potential complications from more aggressive treatment.

On the other hand, men with high-risk disease may be treated with radiation therapy and androgen deprivation therapy (hormonal therapy).

In addition to your risk group, your doctor will also consider other factors, including:

• Your age
• Your overall health
• Your life expectancy
• Your goals for treatment

A combination of all of this information will allow your treating team to discuss all of the options that are available for treating your specific cancer.

Common treatment options for men with prostate cancer include:

• Surgery
• Radiation therapy
• Active surveillance
• Combination radiation therapy with hormonal therapy
• Surgery followed by radiation therapy

The reality is that most treatments are effective at curing the cancer. However, they each have different side effects that your doctors should discuss with you.

We encourage and recommend that if you are diagnosed with prostate cancer, you get an opinion from a urologist (surgeon) and a radiation oncologist to hear all of your options before choosing a treatment. We also recommend you get a second opinion from another institution.

Given the many treatment choices, doctors at some centers may do things quite differently than others.

We believe it is important to understand all of your options and hearing from other doctors at different institutions is helpful. The good news is that we have a lot of great options to treat men with this cancer. It can sometimes be overwhelming to pick what is best for you.

Questions to Ask Your Doctor

Here are some questions you may consider asking your doctor about your risk of developing prostate cancer:

• How does my family history affect my risk of developing prostate cancer?
• Are their tests available to determine my genetic risk of developing prostate cancer?
• Based on my history, genetic test results and other factors, when do you recommend I begin screening for prostate cancer?
• How can I prepare for prostate cancer screening?

The Challenge of Deciding When to Treat Prostate Cancer

Contributing: SurvivorNet Staff

Learn more about SurvivorNet's rigorous medical review process.

---