This is a peculiar case where two brothers were diagnosed with Prostate Cancer within a couple of weeks. The diagnosis was done a few months after the brothers got together for a holiday and had a good laugh about a joke which triggered them to take a test. Keith Powell who is now 68 years old and his younger brother, Alan, were adamant about their luck since the prostate cancer they did not anticipate was more powerful than all of them presumed. Both brothers got a radical prostatectomy done for the treatment and changed their lives for the better.

Alan shared that after seeing Harold he had a random thought that troubled him about how many times a man David goes to the toilet while on vacation. Due to Alan’s troubling thoughts, he decided to get checked up as well. During his check up he emerged a positive as the test results he had gone through yielded the same results with Keith. While all my friends were in a remote cabin in the night and we were on a cruise ferry, Alan said everybody burst into laughter about how many times older men get out to visit the restroom.

Alan exhibited no signs at all.

But despite the absence of signs Alan was ready to take the PSA blood test. Moreover, according to Keith, he indeed had some problems with regular toilet use. I was baffled when I later learned that he always considered himself active and fit. "I was a bit shocked by what came next," said Alan.

Alan received his first grandson as a present just in time for December, but before he did, he went under an MRI scanner and a biopsy, which was followed by the dire diagnosis of cancer.

The unexpected news of Keith's younger brother's illness surfaced and this made GP Keith, who developed skin cancer in the past, take a test that returned an equally shocking headline. “Thankfully, we got lucky and caught both of our cancers while they were still in early stages,” Keith stated. “For both of us, it is lucky that they were caught at an early stage before spreading.”

Alan and Keith’s family is not new to cancer though.

According to the brothers, their father suffered from prostate enlargement when he was old. Alan and Keith’s doctors informed them of enhanced chances to get the disease due to bone indices with prostate cancer in the family.

The reason for developing prostate cancer is still not the utmost known, but certain factors are said to increase the chances of the disease developing.

What is prostate cancer?

As explained by doctors, prostate cancer occurs in the prostate- a walnut shaped organ situated just beneath the bladder and in front of the rectum in men. The prostate’s main function is to secrete fluid which nourishes and protects the sperm cells enabling conception and pregnancy.

Though prostate cancer is a malignant disease, most patients learn they have it before it spreads beyond the prostate gland. At this level, treatment usually eliminates the cancer.

Signs and symptoms of prostate cancer

At the early stage of cancer, patients may experience no symptoms at all, however, the following signs may be relevant:

Having an urgent need to go pee often

Weak urine stream or stream that is interrupted  

Painful urination or feeling a burning sensation

Loss of control over bladder

Inability to control bowel movements

Pain when ejaculating

Inability to get an erection

Blood in semen

Pain felt in the chest, lower back or hips