This is part of WTOP’s continuing coverage of people making a difference in our community, reported by Stephanie Gaines-Bryant. Read more of that coverage.
The statistics are alarming: One in six Black men will develop prostate cancer in his lifetime, according to Alexandria, Virginia-based nonprofit ZERO Prostate Cancer.
That’s why the men of Capitol Heights, Maryland-based Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc., Zeta Chi Sigma Chapter are urging Black men to get tested.
The brotherhood partnered with Zero Prostate Cancer to hold its “2nd Annual Stronger Together 5K Walk & Run for Prostate Cancer Awareness” in Glenn Dale on Sunday.
Wes Lewis, immediate past president of the Zeta Chi Sigma Chapter and the event’s co-chair, said prostate cancer is a disease that has touched his life — in a personal way.
Lewis said he had not thought much about prostate cancer, until his father was diagnosed with the disease. He was serving as president of the Prince George’s County-based chapter at the time.
He told WTOP the organization was already exploring ways to do a health-related event when, “it dawned on me that we weren’t really talking a lot about prostate cancer, from a programmatic perspective.”
Lewis said the chapter partnered with the Howard University Cancer Center in Northwest D.C., which will be providing PSA (prostate-specific antigen) screenings through a simple blood test.
“We want to educate men. We want men to understand what their risk for this disease could be,” said Clinton Burnside, a senior outreach coordinator and manager of a men’s health early detection education program called Men Take Ten at Howard University Cancer Center.
According to Burnside, risk factors include:
- Age — As men get older, their bodies change and those changes may effect their prostate gland
- Genetics — If you have a first-degree relative, such as a father or brother who has the disease, your risk of being diagnosed is increased.
Burnside said symptoms include issues with urination, such as hesitancy, output and retention.
He said that since prostate cancer is a slow-growing cancer, “many men die with prostate cancer, not because of prostate cancer.” Adding, early detection is the key.
Lewis said his father is now cancer-free and credits early detection with saving his father’s life. Lewis added that he’s also sharing the lessons he learned from his father’s diagnosis to his 8-year-old son.
He said his son knows that “he’s running for his grandfather” and “it’s really important that the young folks understand just how serious this is.”
Editor’s note: Additional resources on prostate cancer can be found at the American Cancer Society website and the Prostate Health Education Network (PHEN) website.
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