Most men wouldn’t argue the importance of early detection.
But very few of them willingly schedule regular prostate
screenings – for a variety of reasons.
“Since having my tonsils out when I was 8, I’ve been terrified
of doctors,” prostate cancer survivor Gary McRee explains.
But the 61-year-old tax consultant couldn’t ignore the sta-
tistics: Prostate cancer affects 1 in 6 American men and, when
detected early, its cure rate is nearly 100 percent. This, added
to the fact that his wife was diligent about scheduling her an-
nual health checkups, motivated Gary to follow suit.
And it’s a good thing he did. Without a history for comparison,
Gary’s prostate-specific antigen (PSA) score likely would not have
been cause for concern. His prostate wasn’t enlarged, and he
had none of the usual symptoms, such as frequent and painful
urination, blood in the urine, and pain or stiffness in the lower
back, hips or upper thighs. But the fact that his PSA score ap-
peared to be consistently creeping up was enough to warrant a
referral to local urologist Nadeem Rahman, MD.
A biopsy revealed that Gary had a small amount of cancer in
his prostate. But it wasn’t enough to require aggressive treat-
ment – at least not yet.
“Dr. Rahman was great,” Gary says. “He explained all of my
different options.”
A year later, tests revealed that the prostate cancer was
slowly growing and needed to be removed. This time, Gary
opted for a da Vinci
®
robotic prostatectomy – the gold standard
for surgical prostate removal.
“I was amazed by what a piece of cake the procedure was,”
he explains. “Unlike men I know who had open surgery, I was
back to normal within a week and had practically no pain.”
Gary’s experience, according to Dr. Rahman, is typical for
patients who have robotic surgery.
“In contrast to traditional radical prostatectomy, which re-
quires an 8- to 10-inch incision, the da Vinci only requires a
few small 1- to 2-centimeter incisions,” Dr. Rahman says. “The
benefits to patients are tremendous: less pain and blood loss,
a much quicker recovery, improved cancer control, and a faster
return to continence and potency.”
“I’m completely sold on the da Vinci,” Gary says. “I don’t
know why you would consider anything else.”
Prostate cancer
The da Vinci gold standard
1303 E. Herndon Ave.
Fresno, CA 93720
Nonprofit Org.
U.S. Postage
PAID
Saint Agnes
Medical Center
CHECK THIS OUT!
Learn more about
Saint Agnes’ upcoming
prostate screening and
education events!
See page 3.
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New standards
for healthier
choices
Fast food chains offer healthier
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at-home
options.
For a referral to a surgeon who performs da Vinci
robotic surgery at Saint Agnes, call 559-450-2000 or
800-ST-AGNES (800-782-4637).
In just weeks, Gary
McRee was back to
enjoying some of his
favorite activities, like
visiting nearby Yosemite
National Park with his
wife, Philly.