MYRTLEFORD couple Tom and Lyn Witherow are urging men of all ages to get checked for prostrate cancer.
Tom has been battling the disease since June 2021, when he received a stage four diagnosis.
“I only went in for a medical when I retired, which was my first medical in 25 years,” he said.
“Every 12 months, go and have a medical and get your Prostate-Specific Antigen (PSA) done.
“It’s just a simple blood test and if I had have had that done while I was still working, instead of at 65, they could’ve taken my prostate out.
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“If I had the test done at 60, I would’ve probably been able to be cured.
“It used to be classed as an old man’s disease, but it’s not anymore.
“It’s one of the most treatable cancers, if you catch it early.
“My score was a nine, based on the 1-9 Gleason Score, so in other words, it was a very, very aggressive type of cancer and if I hadn’t jumped on it then, I mightn’t be here now.”
The couple’s main goal is to make people aware and to talk.
“That’s the biggest thing with men; they don't talk about things," Lyn said.
And they also want people to know there is support available, with the couple members of the Wangaratta Prostate Cancer Support Group.
“We can't speak highly enough of the group,” Lyn said.
“It has been a real Godsend to us: we both love the friendship that we’ve found there.
“We are constantly learning and a lot of it is helpful for us ladies, too.”
Tom and Lyn have been actively involved in their support group for the last three years.
“When we saw the notice for the group in the Myrtleford Times, I rang up straight away,” Lyn said.
“We went to our first meeting, run by the nurse who started it, Sally Timms, for the first 12 months.
“Now it is run by Nicola Coats, a registered nurse trained in prostate cancer treatment.
“We’re really, really desperate to have her more, because there's 30-odd people in our group and that's a lot because the support group that was in Albury, folded.”
Support group meetings usually start at 6pm with a meal and an opportunity to socialise.
Participants listen and ask questions, covering topics such as dietary issues, incontinence, physio requirements, medical treatments and side effects.
“You can only talk on your own experiences," said Tom.
“If you want to talk; you can, if you don't want to; you don't have to.”
“And what is said in the meeting, stays in the meeting,” Lyn said.
“Prostate cancer affects the whole family,” Tom said.
“Once you’re diagnosed, your partner is affected as well; it’s one of the side effects, I’ve found.”
The Witherows have been helping run the support group for more than 12 months now.
The Wangaratta Prostate Cancer Support Group incorporates the Shires of Wangaratta, Benalla, Indigo, Alpine and Mansfield.
Family members and partners are also welcome to attend the meetings, which are held on the evening of the second Wednesday of each month.
For more information, contact Bill Gerritson on 0408 552 768.
