When to prostate ncer, 'gay men are erased,' patients say

Contents:

• WHEN TO PROSTATE NCER, 'GAY MEN ARE ERASED,' PATIENTS SAY
• THE PROSTATE MATTERS A GAY MAN'S SEX LIFE
• WHEN GAY MEN GET PROSTATE CANCER
• IN CHIGO, A NEW APPROACH TO GAY AND BISEXUAL MEN WH PROSTATE CANCER
• PROSTATE CANCER GAY, BISEXUAL, AND OTHER MEN WHO HAVE SEX WH MEN: A REVIEW
• GAY AND BISEXUAL MEN'S CLIC

WHEN TO PROSTATE NCER, 'GAY MEN ARE ERASED,' PATIENTS SAY

But the unique challeng facg gay and bisexual men wh prostate ncer have largely gone who have sex wh men (MSM) are ls likely to get regular prostate ncer screengs, and those who are diagnosed are ls likely to have faial and social support, acrdg to rearch ced by the Natnal Instut of Health.

And if their health re provir is not culturally petent, gay and bisexual men are much ls likely to unrstand how treatment will impact their qualy of life.

THE PROSTATE MATTERS A GAY MAN'S SEX LIFE

“I’ve been a gay activist — and been out — so long that I took for granted I uld talk openly to my doctors, ” he told NBC News.

WHEN GAY MEN GET PROSTATE CANCER

Brass’ said his sexual functn was relatively good, but stead he stggled wh ntence for weeks — g as many as ne “pads” a day and stayg wh yards of a bathroom at all you’re gay and you go to a urologist who hasn’t alt wh gay men, they’ll tell you, 'Brg your wife wh you.

'"He joed a prostate ncer support group specifilly for gay and bisexual men at Mount Sai Hospal Manhattan, one of several anized by the natnal advocy anizatn wh other queer men “allowed to be very open about our feelgs — and our sexualy — and to be empathetic wh each other, ” Brass said.

IN CHIGO, A NEW APPROACH TO GAY AND BISEXUAL MEN WH PROSTATE CANCER

"A NEGLECTED AREA"It’s impossible to know how many gay men have been diagnosed prostate ncer, bee qutns about sexualy are rarely clud rearch studi. “The medil muny say, ‘We don’t want to ask olr heterosexual men qutns that might upset them, ’" Simon Rosser, an LGBTQ health specialist and -thor of "Gay and Bisexual Men Livg Wh Prostate Cancer, " told NBC Rosser, PhD, MPH, is a profsor at the Universy of Mnota School of Public Health. Universy of MnotaA profsor at the Universy of Mnota School of Public Health, Rosser has received a $3 ln grant om the Natnal Cancer Instute to put together the first prehensive rehabilatn program specifilly for gay and bisexual men wh prostate ncer.

”Rosser said the silence and shame surroundg the topic allows ugly myths to flourish — like that gay sex somehow “ed” their ncer.

And we have studi that show out are different for gay men: We have worse mental health, we have greater urary problems, but our sexual out are reliably better.

PROSTATE CANCER GAY, BISEXUAL, AND OTHER MEN WHO HAVE SEX WH MEN: A REVIEW

Gettg the disease, ironilly, is somethg of a luxury for a gay men of Brass’ age: Too many had their liv cut short by the AIDS epimic long before they’d typilly be diagnosed (the average age for a prostate ncer diagnosis is 66) the advent of lifavg antiretroviral dgs the mid-1990s, though, gay men are fally reachg their goln years.

”It stole a generatn, but the AIDS epimic also tght gay men how to fight disease, how to ask qutns and how to mand better treatment. Gay men are more likely to enunter this ncer than heterosexual men, not bee they are at a higher risk but bee they and their partners uld both velop they share many of the same challeng as their heterosexual peers, there are signifint differenc, Dr Gary Morrison, a Sydney-based health nsultant, says. Morrison says the new rourc follow through and provi the implitns of each choice for gay and bisexual regnise that the social environment for gay men is different, that their sexual practic are more versatile and that prostate ncer might have a broar effect.

This ncer has the potential to change their whole life as gay men, " Morrison n change their self-image and their sense of masculy, to the extent that pursug a sexual life n be more plited and the imagery and language of rmatn about prostate ncer has tradnally been heterosexual, Morrison says the new rourc e the language of the gay muny and don't hold and rmativeThey are lm and rmative and although the gay muny is diverse, everyone om bankers to bikers n unrstand them. Dpe good tentns, discrimatn and homophobia still exist the health system and when to prostate ncer assumptns are often olr unmarried man is assumed to be sexually active, jt as 's assumed that after treatment a wife will llect the man and take re of him at talk about gay sexualy such an environment n be dntg and the booklets suggt men seek health profsnals they feel fortable booklet quot a man sayg that others "jt don't get what means to be a gay man and the importance of the prostate a gay man's sex life". Radiatn has a range of issu too, such as a slow cle potency, rctn ejaculate and bowel pa worseFollowg radiatn, the receptive partner might fd anal sex mak the pa worse and damag the lite lg of the an and booklets ver the entire prostate ncer experience, om qutns of ttg to tryg to start a new relatnship when treatment is nature of relatnships and emotnal support stctur gay muni is often different to heterosexual muni and gay men often talk about a greater sense of isolatn.

GAY AND BISEXUAL MEN'S CLIC

There is value, the booklets say, participatg gay support groups, which n provi a sense of unrstandg, belongg and a man has a partner, prervg timacy is important and the booklets suggt he be up ont. Though the ter landspe has changed sce his diagnosis 2003, Rose's experience is still reprentative of the lack of awarens and rearch surroundg how prostate ncer may affect gay men differently than straight men. Much of the fundg for rearchg diseas that may affect gay men has been funneled toward HIV; and some of the gay men who may have gotten prostate ncer – which is more mon wh age – died of AIDS and therefore are theoretilly missg om the data, says Simon Rosser, a profsor and director of the HIV/STI Interventn and Preventn Studi at the Universy of Mnota School of Public Health.