Faces of prostate cancer - the men for whom I run...

Prostate cancer is the second leading death of cancer among men. 240,000 men are diagnosed with prostate cancer each year and 30,000 others lose their lives. Odds are that you know someone who has had prostate cancer, is battling the disease right now or has unfortunately succumbed to the disease. If you haven't been touched by prostate cancer, congratulations, but odds are, unfortunately, you WILL know someone in your lifetime. 


Having a 20-year prostate cancer survivor as my father, I know more about this disease than I ever would have imagined. I am by no means an expert, but I know what works and doesn't work in Dad's case and I have been and always will be his advocate.


Obviously, the reason why I am involved with ZERO, why I beg for money and why I raise awareness is for my dad. But it is also for many other men in my life or in my friends' lives. This Sunday, when I race at the ZERO 2016 Prostate Cancer Run/Walk it will be first and foremost to honor my dad but also to honor or memorialize these men as well:
Willie L. Sitton, “Poppy”, “Uncle Bill”

Poppy is the father of my dear friend, Gloria, and my "South Carolina Daddy". The first time I met him, we instantly connected and I knew this was a genuine and special man with which I was conversing - the epitome of a downhome, traditional, Southern gentleman.

In November 2014, at the age of 81, Poppy was diagnosed with prostate cancer.  He was diagnosed during a routine checkup in which his PSA had risen significantly since his prior checkup.  An MRI was then conducted and cancer was confirmed. The tumor was so small that Poppy's doctor recommended intense radiation for a month and a half instead of surgery, which at his age would have been more dangerous than the cancer itself. After deciding to take prostate cancer head on, I am proud to say that on May 19, 2015, Poppy had his last radiation treatment and rang the bell at the finish line! Poppy is a perfect example of how routine checkups are important and early detection is key!  He is continuing with hormone therapy and is on medicine for nausea and another to relax the prostate area. Poppy is an example of how we should never give up!

"The race is not a sprint. It's a marathon! Keep going!"
Farrell Thomas

In 2013, Farrell, Gloria's cousin by marriage and part of my South Carolina family, was diagnosed at the young age of 42 with a PSA of 5. (For a point of reference, my dad was diagnosed at the age of 47 with a PSA of 26.)  Farrell's doctor told him he had not seen many men as young as he diagnosed with prostate cancer.  Farrell had robotic surgery to remove the prostate and his PSA has been 0 ever since! He is a perfect example of how prostate cancer can affect any man - regardless of age - and how early detection is key! Farrell continues to have PSA tests every six months and is thankful to God for his recovery and for the support of his incredible wife, Gina.

Tony Wilson

I met Tony when he was 36 years old back in 1996. Tony was full of life, athletic and a devoted father of two young boys. Tony was part of my everyday life when my dad was initially diagnosed with prostate cancer. 

About a year after we met, Tony moved to Colorado and while we kept in a touch for a while, it wasn't long before life got in the way and we lost touch for many years.  Three years ago, our paths crossed again and I was shocked and sad to hear that he had been diagnosed with prostate cancer in October of 2011 at the age of 51. At the time of diagnosis, Tony was only four years older than my dad at his time of diagnosis and my heart shuddered to think that he had gone through this battle at such a young age and alone.

When Tony was diagnosed, his PSA was 46! He endured hormone therapy and Cyberknife radiation treatments - five directly to the prostate and 23 to the surrounding lymph nodes. His treatment was completed in March 2012 and he has had negative PSAs ever since. He's physically doing well, is appreciative of every day that the Lord has given him and wholeheartedly believes in the power of prayer.

Glenn Poe

Natalie, my friend and Glenn's daughter, was happy to share his story with me. Glenn was diagnosed in 1992 at the age of 54. His prostate cancer was diagnosed through a routine checkup and he had a PSA of 4.5.

Glenn was told that if his cancer was inoperable he had five to six years to live and if it was operable he had 10 to 12 years to live.  Glenn has surpassed the doctor's expectations because he is now 78 years old!

He endured radiation and surgery in which his urologist said the cancer was well contained and he was able to "get it all".  Twenty-four years later, Glenn is still cancer free and continues to have a PSA of 0.1! He has always had an unshakeable fear of the 10-12 year survival comment and while now feeling physically healthy, he remains heartbroken over the loss of his amazing wife to ovarian cancer in December 2012.  Natalie attributes her father's survival to early detection which yielded great results!

Lou Manne

Lou, my friend Adam's dad, was diagnosed at the age of 80 by way of a routine blood test during his annual physical.  Lou endured radiation and chemotherapy with his last treatment being in December 2014. A native, New Yorker, Lou now enjoys life between living in Las Vegas and Bali, Indonesia. Once he got a clean bill of health in the U.S., he couldn't wait to go back to Bali and enjoy the good life again! I can't blame him! He will continue follow up appointments and routine PSAs when he returns to Vegas.

 Gary Pugh

I've known Gary for the majority of my life. I grew up with

his daughter, Kari, and his son, Casey. Their mother, Sheila, was my mom's best friend and my "second mom" until we unfortunately lost her in November 2003. 

In 2013, Gary's PSA slowly started to increase but was still only at a 2.5. His doctor suggested Gary see a urologist when it was at 4.5 at which time a biopsy was conducted. In September 2014, Gary was diagnosed with prostate cancer at the age of 67. In February 2015, he opted to have surgery to remove the prostate to hopefully eliminate the risk of his cancer returning.

Ironically, his urologist is the protégé of my dad's urologist who diagnosed him back in 1997. Gary is in great hands because Dr. Desai is a mini me of Dr. Lou and extremely proactive! Another example how early detection and a proactive doctor is key!

Bill

In 2003, at the age of 71, Bill's PSA was a 5 and had symptoms of problematic urination. His doctor recommended a biopsy which confirmed prostate cancer and that same year Bill had a radical prostatectomy. In 2004, Bill's PSA started to increase again. A small spot was found and he went through radiation. I'm happy to say he has been cancer free ever since with a PSA of 0.1.

Clarence R. Moore

Clarence is my dad's grandfather who was diagnosed in the 1960s with prostate cancer had cobalt radiation treatment because it was the only option at that point in time. He was a master electrician and died in 1968. I, unfortunately, was not able to meet my great grandfather who my dad remembers fondly. I feel he passed on many of his genuine traits to his great grandson.

Art Campbell

I never got the pleasure of meeting Art, but I often feel as if I know him through his son. Art was diagnosed with prostate cancer with a PSA in the single digits but it slowly increased over time. After radiation and chemotherapy, it eventually metastasized to the bone and caused much pain in the pelvic area and broken bones.  At the age of 83, Art lost his battle as a result of prostate-cancer related complications.
The following are additional men who have been affected by prostate cancer for whom I vowed to walk. Unfortunately, I have not been given photos or stories but will share what I know.

I will also be racing in honor or memory of the following men:

• Avery Williams, survivor and friend
• Ron DeFreitas, survivor and friend, currently undergoing chemotherapy and radiation
• the father of my cousin, Gail Moore
• the father of my friend, Nancy Kotney
• the father of my friend, Paula Calvin
• Robert Pearles, the grandfather of Kerri Beroza (Certified Specialist of Wine, Ingleside Vineyards)
• Ron Klebacher, father of my friend, Honora Klebacher - survivor of prostate (and colon) cancer
• the father of Laura Brletic (owner of Confections Cupcakery)
• Tony Keyes, four year survivor and husband of Dawn Keyes (Old Hickory Golf Club)
• Gerry Moore, survivor and father of my high school friend, Jenny
• Sy Estep, maternal grandfather of my favorite guy

Rob Harris

While Rob did not have prostate cancer, I am adding him to my list of men for whom I walk because: 1) he was the son of a very good friend of mine; and 2) the way he fought his battle is one that should be showcased and admired.  On November 29, 2015, Rob was diagnosed with metastatic adenocarcinoma, characterized as Stage 4 small cell lung cancer.  His prognosis for survival without chemo was 3-6 months and with chemo and radiation was a year. Rob was not satisfied with simply extending his life while enduring the ravages of traditional chemo and radiation. After much research and soul searching, he decided to fight this disease with a non-traditional approach - starting with a complete raw diet of organic vegetables and fruit to detoxify his body followed by treatment protocols including immunotherapy and was gone for over a month.. abroad.  (Check out www.gersontreatment.com for more info.) 

I am horribly sad to say that Rob lost his valiant battle to cancer on March 24, 2016; never giving up, always staying positive and doing it HIS way. In the words of his heartbroken father, and one of my favorite people, Bob, "During the last month, he was in horrible pain. But, to talk with him, you would never have known it. Positive and upbeat until the end. He was actually thanking all the nursing staff for all that they did until hours before he passed away. Rob was an amazing and thoughtful person who loved his family, loved his son unconditionally, loved life and lived it to the fullest, and was an unwavering friend." May we all learn from Rob and remain Harris Strong!

Through me, these men will never be alone, will never be forgotten and they will continue to have a voice.

It's not too late to make a donation and help me put an end to this wretched disease!  2.8 million men are diagnosed with prostate cancer every year!! Please help me create Generation Zero!


http://support.zerocancer.org/site/TR/RunWalk/RunWalk16?px=1102458&pg=personal&fr_id=1082 

Blessings abound

It's been a while since I've updated everyone and perhaps it was because after an incredibly successful fundraiser in April, I needed to decompress. I am ecstatic to say that I had over 80 people in attendance and more donated raffle, silent auction, and door prizes than last year. As a result, I raised over $6,000 and there are so many people to thank. For fear of inadvertently missing someone, I'm not going to state names. You know who you are - you were there. You bought cupcakes, you bought raffle tickets, you bid on silent auction items, you drank wine and you supported my family in a way that cannot compare! For that, and so much more, I thank you.

I am almost at my goal of $12,500 and I have 11 days to go! So that means there is still plenty of time for you procrastinators to donate! You thought that you were off the hook, huh? Yeah, not so much. I will never stop trying to put an end to this disease!  Here's the link to make a donation: http://support.zerocancer.org/site/TR/RunWalk/RunWalk16?px=1102458&pg=personal&fr_id=1082
More important than the money and the awareness I am raising is the fact that Dad is finally healing! You may recall that his last chemo was December 30, 2015. We decided to take a chemo vacation because his body was extremely weak and could not take anymore. While chemo was killing the cancer, it had begun to lose its effectiveness because the PSA started to slowly rise again. More detrimental than that was the fact that chemo was starting to do more harm to Dad than good. The poison needed to cease.

One would think when you stop chemo, you would start feeling better soon, right? Wrong. Just because you stop pumping poison into your body every month doesn't mean that the poison disappears. The effects don't disappear either. Over the last six months, I have been watching my dad slowly deteriorate. He hasn't been suffering because of the cancer though. He's been suffering at the hand of chemo.  Chemo has caused him to walk with a cane (if he walks at all) because his feet hurt so bad from nerve pain. Chemo has caused him to stop eating and lose weight at a pound a week because his gums were badly infected, his teeth are loose and it is extremely painful to bite. Chemo has caused him extreme fatigue and exhaustion just by sitting in a chair. Chemo has caused him to go back on oxycodone every three to four hours because the constant head and mouth pain is horrendous. Chemo has caused his personality to diminish because he is living in complete misery. He doesn't engage in conversation and  he suffers through continuous pain getting frustrated because he has no energy or strength to do the simplest of tasks. Chemo brain caused him to act erratically and I can't even begin to tell you how much my mom resembles a pure angel.  Chemo changed my dad.  I would see him but I wouldn't know him. That man who looked like my dad wasn't my dad anymore.

He has been blessed with advice from a nutritionist over the last few months and I taught Mom how to make smoothies so Dad would get the calories and good fat that he needs to put weight back on or at least to help him stop losing. Hesitant at first because who in their right mind wants to drink green stuff, it didn't take long for him to jump on the green smoothie bandwagon and that started to help. Then one morning, in late May, he was able to get into the periodontist. That's when things started to change.

Within three days of being put on two different antibiotics and a medicated mouthwash, Dad's mouth pain was just about gone!! The man who has been sitting in a chair, sucking down narcotics, barely eating and holding his face in his hands in pure misery day in and day out talked to me on the phone for two straight hours! One night, he was afraid that mom would complain because she was trying to sleep and he wouldn't stop talking! On June 1, we celebrated his birthday at his favorite local Mexican restaurant and he not only carried on a conversation with us the entire time but he even started them! We spent more time with him at home opening presents and he even jumped up and started screaming at the tv because of the exciting Nats baseball game!  I was in awe and almost couldn't believe my eyes.  I looked at Dad and said, "Welcome back, buddy!" The defining moment; however, was when I went to leave my parents' house that night.

For as long as I can remember, when I leave, my mom and dad stand on the front porch waving until I drive out of sight. I can't remember the last time my dad even got up out of his chair to say goodbye much less came outside. That night, June 1, I sat in my car, turned around to look at the house as I was backing out and the biggest smile came across my face. My parents - both of them - my mom AND MY DAD - were standing on the front porch waving goodbye to me. You'd think it was my birthday and not Dad's because I got the best present of all that night!

I'm pleased to say that Dad has been improving more and more each day. In his 45 years of practice, the periodontist said he's never seen someone respond to antibiotics and heal so quickly! We thought he may have to pull Dad's loose teeth but now that may not even have to occur. Chemo caused his gum line to pull away from his teeth, but it may grow back in time. We'll try to be patient and see what happens over the next few months. Bottom line is my dad's personality is back, the infection and mouth pain are gone and he hasn't had to take oxycodone in almost a week!

Every day is a gift. Every good day is a blessing. When you have nothing but bad days for six months straight, a string of good days culminating in a week is an absolute miracle.

Thank you all for your continued prayers. Please keep 'em coming! We have been through the valley and it was very dark. But we've seen the light at the end of the tunnel. While it's a very long tunnel, that slightest hint of light is making all the difference.