The Movement To Create Generation “ZERO Prostate”

May 16, 2017

It is a cancer that only affects men – and in a way so personal that those who receive a diagnosis are all-too-often stigmatized into silence.

It is prostate cancer.

Yet according to the American Cancer Society, in 2017 there will be over 161,000 new cases of prostate cancer in the U.S., and it will take the lives of nearly 27,000 fathers, sons, husbands, brothers, partners, and friends.

But there is a movement afoot to create Generation ZERO – the first generation of men free from prostate cancer.

That movement begins with the men brave enough to ignore the stigma, and break the silence by telling their personal stories of early detection and treatment for prostate cancer.

Men like Alan Schwartz, who shares his story to inspire others, including his own son, who was also recently diagnosed with prostate cancer.

Prostate cancer can be a serious disease, but most men diagnosed with it do not die from it. In fact, more than 2.9 million men in the United States who have been diagnosed with prostate cancer are still alive today.

Early detection is a key factor. The main screening method is a simple blood test known as the prostate-specific antigen, or PSA. When this should occur is based on any number of factors.

Whether or not to have the PSA screening is something a man needs to talk with his primary care physician about at his annual physical.

“An individualized approach of the appropriateness of PSA-based screening is necessary,” says Dr. Joseph Wagner of the Hartford HealthCare Tallwood Urology and Kidney Institute. “This approach should consider individual factors, particularly family history and ethnicity.”

The Generation ZERO movement doesn’t end with men educating other men. It includes fundraising for research in the fight against prostate cancer through a series of ZERO Prostate Walk/Run (even Snooze) events held around the nation each year.

The Hartford ZERO Prostate Walk/Run takes place at Dunkin’ Donuts Park in Hartford on June 10 at 9 AM, along with a free men’s health fair. To participate in the Race for ZERO Prostate, sign-up here.