Prostate cancer pilot to test 200

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Speaking before a gathering of about 100 community leaders at the Bel Alton High School community development center Saturday afternoon, Noble, of Huntingtown, spoke without a polite filter. He explained prostate cancer symptoms, such as decreased urinary pressure, and the dreaded "digital rectal exam" without a smirk.

"When my finger goes into a fellow's rectum, I can feel this walnut-sized gland," Noble said drawing one of several nervous laughs from the crowd. "This takes five seconds; they call me Speedy Gonzales."

"That's a long five seconds!" shouted one crowd member.

Noble's presentation highlighted the difficulties facing the Charles County Health Department's goal of screening uninsured county residents for prostate cancer this year under a new state and locally funded pilot program.

Prostate cancer is a personal subject that forces men to face issues like sexual potency and mortality. Noble explained that many would rather avoid the issue, and a humiliating test, than face the strong chance that they will get the cancer.

Recognizing this problem, the Morgan State University Southern Maryland alumni and the Nu Zeta Omega chapter of the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority organized Saturday's event to train county leaders to talk to uninsured men in their churches and community groups and convince them to be tested.

"We want to help the health department to attain the goal of screening 200 men," said William Young, president of the Morgan alumni.

Both Young's group and the AKA sorority strongly supported the passage of a pilot testing program for uninsured men in the 2007 Maryland legislative session. The program's sponsor was Sen. Thomas "Mac" Middleton (D-Charles), who attended Saturday's event.

"The information was startling," Middleton said. Due to budget cuts, the program did not get funding until this year. It is currently funded by the state and the county, but now the hard part begins — getting men to participate.

Shirley Hancock, the health department's program supervisor, said the department has taken time to ensure that the program is "not a mill [men] are just being run through," but added that the department is "really pushing this, so we can get it done in a year."

During his presentation, Noble referred to some sobering statistics. Between 40 and 59, men have a 3 percent chance of getting prostate cancer. During the next 15 years of aging, that number spikes up to 33 percent. African American men are 61 percent more likely to get prostate cancer than Caucasian men. Men who have an immediate family member with prostate cancer are twice as likely to get it. As of 2004, Charles County was exceeding the prostate cancer mortality rate of its neighboring counties, the state and the nation with a rate of 49.6 deaths per 100,000 people.

jfriess@somdnews.com