Prostate Cancer Research News: How Does It Apply To Me?

My father was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2002. I still remember going with him to his doctor's appointment where we nervously sat in the exam room and waited for his urologist to see us. As his doctor walked in, he shook our hands, and proceeded to tell us the results of the tests. My father had prostate cancer. I was devastated and overwhelmed with emotions, but I tried to be strong.

My father looked at me with a confused expression on his face. He wanted me to reiterate and confirm the diagnosis because he couldn't believe it. I stared back at him and as I grabbed his hand, I repeated the doctor's words, but said it in Korean. His eyes grew large and filled with fear and for a momen; I swear I felt his heart dropping within his chest, or at least I felt the heaviness of my heart as it sunk to the bottom of my stomach.

I couldn't imagine what it was like for my father to hear from his youngest daughter that he had prostate cancer. I think he may have been embarrassed, but more than that, he must have been fearful of what the future held for him. As an immigrant from Korea, his perspective of cancer was different than mine as I was born and raised in the United States. I think both my parents saw cancer as an inescapable death sentence.

Driven by a strong sense of urgency, we both asked a ton of questions and wanted to know our treatments options. He said we could either watchfully wait to see if my father's PSA level increases or we could choose from several treatment options, such as radiation therapy. My father responded by saying he would have to consult my mother and sister and as a family, we would decide on the best treatment option.

After discussing it as a family, we decided to go ahead with radiation therapy. Both of my parents wanted to eradicate the cancer and get rid of it as soon as possible and my sister and I supported the decision. In the coming weeks, I went with my father to his radiation appointments and we did everything we could to walk through this ordeal together as a family. Now, five years later, my father is cancer free.

Sometimes I wonder what makes one person more likely to develop or survive a certain disease than another person. Could ethnicity predict or even help someone overcome a certain illness or disease? How about gender or socioeconomic status? Are there factors that can predict one's ability to survive a given disease?

Was there something about my father that made him more likely to survive prostate cancer? Could it have been his diet or exercise level or maybe it was his perspective of cancer and fear of death and his love for his family that made him choose a more aggressive form of treatment.

A recent study examined whether certain characteristics explain the differences in prostate cancer survival rates among different ethnic groups. The authors of the study conclude that factors, such as age, stage of cancer, treatment, year of diagnosis, and socioeconomic status, do not explain why most Asian men have better survival compared to their white counterparts.