September is National Prostate Cancer Awareness Month

MIAMI BEACH, Fla. – This week Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (FL-20) met with medical professionals and a prostate cancer survivor at Mount Sinai Comprehensive Cancer Center in Miami Beach to raise awareness of prostate cancer and raise awareness of the free screenings that are available to South Floridians.

Prostate cancer is becoming the most commonly diagnosed cancer in American males today – and it’s the second leading cause of cancer deaths overall in the United States. Even former Florida State football coach Bobby Bowden recently revealed that he battled prostate cancer while he was coaching in 2007.

Here are the facts:

• Every 5 minutes in this country, two men are diagnosed with prostate cancer.

• One in every six men is at risk of getting prostate cancer in their lifetime.

• And men who have a close relative with the disease have double the chance of getting it themselves.  With two close relatives, that risk becomes five-fold. With three, the chance is 97 percent.

So no matter a man’s age now, it’s important to educate men of all ages about knowing the signs to look for and taking the time to get one of the free screenings available in their community.  

We know that prostate cancer is mainly found in men over age 55, with an average age of 70 at the time of diagnosis.   And thanks to the passage of the Affordable Care Act – the health care reform law, there are many free preventative services available so that prostate cancer and other diseases can be detected early.

In fact, the 3.3 million Floridians who are on Medicare can now obtain annual recommended preventive services for free – that includes important screenings like the Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA) Test, mammograms, colonoscopies, and even a free annual wellness visit, all of which will keep you healthier longer.

Please share this with a family member or friend, and make sure someone you love gets screened today.