Doctor urges importance of early prostate cancer screenings after Ryne Sandberg's death
Common cancer can be treatable if caught early enough
CHICAGO (WLS) -- Ryne "Ryno" Sandberg announced he was diagnosed with metastatic prostate cancer in January 2024.
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Unfortunately, in Sandberg's case, it appeared he discovered the cancer when it was no longer curable.
Doctors are now reminding men to get screened early. Those with a family history of prostate, breast, ovarian or pancreatic cancer are especially at risk.
Dr. Scott Eggener, a professor of surgery at the University of Chicago, said prostate cancer can be cured if caught early enough.
Men should start screening as early as their 40s.
After undergoing chemotherapy and radiation treatments, Sandberg said he was improving. But, months later, the cancer returned.
"It was a bit mysterious to those of us that have expertise in prostate cancer based on it was announced as his diagnosis," Dr. Eggener said. "I don't know the specifics of his situation. Though, I anticipate he had a good scan and maybe some good bloodwork. But, for the most part, people with metastatic prostate cancer are not curable. It's a chronic disease. It can be managed for a period of time, but it almost always leads to death from the disease."
Doctors say there has been a lot of progress as far as diagnosing, managing and treating prostate cancer over the last decade.
Among the advancements include new medications, techniques and approaches to improving longevity and the quality of life for men with prostate cancer.
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It's one of the most common cancers among men.
But, doctors warn men, there are aggressive forms of prostate cancer that do spread.
Five days a week, Jim Kelly spends 15 minutes of his time at the UroPartners Cancer Treatment Center Glenview office. The 63-year-old is on an aggressive radiology treatment plan for prostate cancer. Kelly was diagnosed in December after an annual screening.
"I was shocked I was, you know inside, sore," Kelly said. "Doc says 90% recovery, which is a blessing, so I always try to think positive and eat the right things."
Kelly calls cancer the six-letter word no one wants to hear. But fortunately, his stage 2 cancer was caught early enough.
Kelly's next move is trying to convince some of his hesitant buddies to get tested for prostate cancer. It involves a simple blood test and periodically a rectal exam.
Urologist Dr. Paul Yonover says if men have a family history of the disease or are African American, screening needs to begin at 40. If not, men should start screening between 40-50 up to the ages of 70-75.
"If we do that regularly, we think that we can catch most of cancers in the early stages. And if you can catch it early, you can either monitor it or treat it, and it can be curative," Yonover said.
But, Yonover says there is a small group of men who get diagnosed with an aggressive cancer that has already spread.
"Our goal is to help anybody who has metastatic disease suppress the disease so that we can keep it controlled for a considerable period of time," Yonover said.
Dr. Yonover says a PSMA Pet Scan is relatively new technology that has revolutionized how doctors are diagnosing and treating prostate cancer. It allows doctors to isolate the tumors.
"What that does is it allows us to identify the disease. If we can see it, we can treat it," Yonover said.
Annual screenings for prostate cancer are not always offered during an annual exam with a patient's primary care physician. Urologists urge men to talk to their individual doctors about it.
