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Beware of what you may read!

An article online in The East African on Saturday could be misleading for African men.

This article states that, “The blood test used to screen for prostate cancer saves very few lives. And it leads to risky and unnecessary treatments for large numbers of men, two studies have found.” And this statement is true … in America and Europe, where the two studies were carried out, and where PSA testing has been widespread for 20 years.

However, the situation in Africa is very different. For starters, the risk for prostate cancer among black Africans appears to be higher than it is even for African Americans. Second, most Africans have not been being tested for prostate cancer for the past 20 years. It would be completely inappropriate to apply the results of these two studies to men on the African continent at this time.

Ishmael Norman’s Cross-Ghana Walk-a-Thon

In a few weeks time, Ishmael Norman, a 54-year-old Ghanaian prostate cancer survivor, will be starting a 1600-mile trip on foot and by bicycle from Half Assini near the border between Ghana and the Ivory Coast through Accra to Tamale in northern Ghana.

Prostate cancer risk in men of African descent

Odedina et al. have reviewed available data on the incidence, prevalence, and mortality rates of  prostate cancer among African Americans, Afro-Caribbeans, and men in West African nations historically associated with the trans-Atlantic slave trade. They note the very high incidence of prostate cancer among all these groups, which appears to reflect an ancestral genetic predisposition for prostate cancer. They also note that the morbidity and mortality of prostate cancer among African Americans has been falling since 1991; however, the rate of that fall is less that among Caucasian Americans.

Major screening initiative starts up in Lagos, Nigeria

According to the Vanguard online, the Lagos State Government this week kicked off the second phase of a free prostate cancer awareness and screening program. This initiative is based on the premise that as many as 14 million Nigerian men may be afflicted with prostate cancer, the most common cause of cancer death in Nigerian men aged 50 and above.

Phase II of Site Development Now Complete

We are pleased to be able to announce the completion of Phase II in the development of the Prostate Cancer Africa knowledge-base.

At a minimum, for every African nation, the site now contains:

• Core information on prostate cancer in English, French, and Spanish as relevant
• Printable PDF files about prostate cancer risk and diagnosis
• Printable PDF files addressing the basics about treatment
• A section on the epidemiology of prostate cancer

Major items still to be addressed include translations of content into Arabic, Portuguese, and Swahili for relevant nations.

It’s Time for Tanzanian Men to Get Active!

In a recent article on the Tanzanian Daily News Online, Dr. Ali Mzige asks why men are so far behind their womenfolk in ensuring testing for prostate cancer as compared to breast cancer. Good question Dr. Mzige!

Limited Access to Modern Treatment Options

Olapade-Olaopa and colleagues reported earlier this year that, “In Africa, most patients with CaP present with advanced disease, and surgical castration is the most common treatment option, as most modern treatment strategies for the disease are unavailable or unaffordable.”

They note that, based on a detailed literature review and direct interviews with other physicians and other health care executives, in Africa, most patients with CaP present with advanced disease, and surgical castration is the most common treatment option, as most modern treatment strategies for the disease are unavailable or unaffordable. A significant proportion of these men progress to hormone-resistant disease shortly after first-line hormonal treatment, and a majority die within 2 years. Problems that are peculiar to the African continent include poor health facilities, scarcity of expert care, high cost of treatment, lack of data, low level of awareness of the disease, absence of early detection and treatment programs, cultural limitations, and the prominence of alternative medical practice.

Increasing Prevalence of Cancer in Africa

An article in the September 10 issue of the Nairobi-published Business Daily has addressed “the increasing onslaught” of cancer in Africa, calling out increasing risk for prostate cancer as one specific factor.

The article goes on to note that, “Although many of the cancers found in Africa are preventable or treatable when detected early enough, the grim picture of insufficient resources and a lack of basic infrastructure mean that most Africans have no access to cancer screening, early diagnosis, treatment or palliative care.”

Current World Health Organization (WHO) projections suggest that more than 1 million new cancer diagnoses each year in Africa by 2020. A significant proportion of those cases can be expected to be prostate cancers, and most of the prostate cancer diagnoses can currently be expected to be made too late for curative treatment to be effective.

Early Content on This Web Site

As of September 1, 2008, this site contains basic information about prostate cancer customized for every single African nation.

At this time, this content is only provided in English. Our next major goal will be to provide appropriate translations of this content in Arabic, French, and Portuguese for the appropriate countries. Translations of content into specific African local languages is likely to take longer, but is a goal of this site.