By Tim Baker | In the tool kit for managing the distress and trauma of a cancer diagnosis, have you ever considered the role of writing therapy?

By Tim Baker | You hear and read a lot in oncology about the dangers of offering false hope to cancer patients. From spurious folk remedies and snake oil to the uncertain benefits of nutrition and emotional healing...

By Tim Baker | Older readers may recall a time when patients who’d undergone major medical procedures might look forward to some time recuperating in what was rather quaintly termed a “Convalescent Home”....

By Tim Baker | Artificial intelligence (AI) has the potential to transform many areas of healthcare, including cancer care. But can it replace medical professionals? Tim Baker shares his thoughts. 

Are you aware of the Australian Healthcare Charter of Rights?

My recent cancer memoir Patting The Shark was written as part of a creative writing PhD at Griffith University. The book forms what’s called the creative component of my PhD and now it’s done, I’ve turned my attention to the academic component, the Exegesis.

Over time, I’ve realised this journey is a marathon not a sprint.

I’d be the first to admit, I came out of the blocks a bit hard, abruptly and radically overhauling my diet, exercising like a maniac, meditating like a monk, researching whacky folk remedies and overpriced herbs and supplements, desperate to do all I could to remain fit and healthy.

Living with cancer does predispose me to bouts of nostalgia, the “before times” when life felt free and easy, without this mortal threat lurking in the shadows.

If you have prostate cancer and have started (or are about to start) hormone therapy treatment you can now register for a research study that will test the effectiveness of a new supportive care program provided by specialist prostate cancer nurses.

Prostate cancer is often referred to as a couples’ disease because it impacts the partner of the person with the diagnosis so acutely (if they have a partner).

Never been a big fan of New Year’s resolutions, myself. It always feels like setting yourself up to fail, or scolding yourself for not doing enough, being virtuous enough, being enough.

PCFA is about to start a review of Australia's guidelines for prostate cancer testing, harnessing our chance to change the way we manage the disease. 

Last week we brought together some of the country's leading clinicians to talk about new and emerging treatment options that have vastly improved the way we diagnose and treat prostate cancer. 

The vodcast touches on robotic and open prostatectomies, advances in radiotherapy, and the frontlines of research into side-effect management and treatment of erectile dysfunction and incontinence.

If you have any questions, or need support, call 1800 22 00 99 to speak with a PCFA Telenurse.

You’ve probably heard these three words a fair bit in recent years. You might even be sick of hearing them, but you are probably going to have to get used to it.

In the context of cancer care, most would agree the standard of care you receive should not be determined by your bank balance, ethnicity, postcode, religion, gender identity or sexual orientation. This has been a hot topic at recent oncology conferences and for good reason.

We all need our happy place, somewhere we can get lost in a sense of something greater than the self... For me, it’s the ocean and I’ve never been more grateful to be a surfer than since my diagnosis, even as my performance levels decline with the impacts of the meds and ageing.

If you’re suffering from financial toxicity, you probably don’t need the concept explained to you...

What do you think when you hear the term “integrative oncology”?

In my experience, a lot of people are a bit sceptical about the term, imagining it as code for spurious, expensive and alternative cancer treatments...

Nominations for Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia’s 2022 Max Gardner Awards are now officially open.

Your correspondent was recently invited to take part in the fabulous Ubud Writers and Readers Festival, for its 2022 return after two years of COVID cancellations. The festival’s theme was “Uniting Humanity” and, with writers from all over the world baring their souls, I’d say it achieved its aim.

For something a little different, herewith a photo essay of my journey, spreading the message of supportive care for men with Prostate Cancer to the world, through my book Patting The Shark.

Yay! We can travel again! Dust off the passports! Pull out the Hawaiian shirts and Qantas bags.

But wait! What’s this? We can’t get travel insurance for pre-existing conditions without paying a fortune? So, if we want to travel, we aren’t going to be covered for anything related to our cancer, or our holiday budget is going to take a massive hit. If you are living with advanced, metastatic disease, or even just on Androgen Deprivation Therapy (ADT) for localised disease, your pre-existing condition exclusions might take in a huge range of ailments.

Skeletal related events (SREs), also known as symptomatic skeletal events, occur due to bone instability related to the treatment of advanced prostate cancer or due to the spread of prostate cancer to the bone (metastases). This results in localised pain at the site of spread and increased risk of fractures. Metastases to the spinal column can result in a pathological fracture with collapse of the vertebrae leading to spinal cord compression. SREs are associated with increased risk of mortality, pain, and low-quality of life. Symptomatic bone lesions may require radiotherapy or surgical intervention to improve symptoms. Patients may also present with high calcium levels in the blood.

Greetings from Bali, where your correspondent finds himself enjoying a break from normal transmission, in the splendour of the Ubud Readers and Writers Festival. I’m here to talk about my book Patting The Shark, which you might already be aware documents the perilous path of the prostate cancer patient and my quest for a sensible, middle path through mainstream and evidence-based complementary therapies.

Changing the health care system is slow, difficult and expensive.

So, I thought I’d save everyone a lot of time, cost and trouble by designing new guidelines for the delivery and management of a prostate cancer diagnosis, based on my admittedly complete absence of medical qualifications, apart from seven years as a prostate cancer patient.

Those of us on hormone therapy probably don’t need reminding that exercise is one of the best things we can do for ourselves, for its many benefits: improved cardio-vascular health, bone density, muscle mass and mood, all compromised by hormone therapy (Androgen Deprivation Therapy).

On Wednesday 19 October from 10am to 8pm we’re holding a national call-in day on erectile dysfunction (ED) for men and their partners.

If you want to talk about management and treatment of ED or things such as low libido, shrinkage, body image or just plain frustration with it all, please call us for information and advice.

We’ll have our specially trained Telenursing team on deck to take your calls on 1800 22 00 99.

The European Society of Medical Oncology 2022 Conference was hosted in Paris from 9-13 September. Updates from some of the key clinical trials presented at the conference will be discussed in this blog.  

Everyone responds to a cancer diagnosis differently. Some embrace yoga, meditation and a plant-based diet. Some retreat from the world. Some resolve to suck the marrow from life and chase an audacious bucket list.

There may be no satisfactory answer to the question: Why did I get cancer?

If you are a lifelong smoker with lung cancer, chances are that was a contributing factor. Lengthy court cases have been waged to establish if exposure to the toxic pesticide and known carcinogen Roundup was responsible for the various cancers suffered by gardeners and farmers and others who regularly doused themselves with the stuff.

During the COVID 19 pandemic, particularly the strict lockdowns in Victoria, there was a sharp and dramatic drop in cancer diagnoses. And the sharpest and most dramatic drop of all was for prostate cancer, with a 60% reduction in prostate cancer screening in Victoria.

Thank you to everyone who joined us on Thursday for our latest webinar, CANCER, SEX & SIDE-EFFECTS: Managing erectile dysfunction after prostate cancer

If you missed it, you can watch it back here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N1jdTbgDdx0 

This month TENA Men has launched a new washable underwear range to help men impacted by light incontinence in the Wear it with Confidence campaign.

For one week only, from Wednesday September 21 to Tuesday September 27, PCFA friends can get 35% off* the new products using the discount code PCFA at checkout.