Dallas Cowboys Quarterback Tony Romo Tackles Prostate Cancer 

NapsNet.com |10.10.2009

Superstar quarterback Tony Romo found himself in new territory when he learned that his father was battling cancer. Ramiro Romo had shown no signs or symptoms of the disease when a screening exam revealed he had prostate cancer. The experience shocked and scared his entire family.

Thankfully, the elder Romo's cancer was caught early. Now, Tony and his dad have teamed up with the Prostate Conditions Education Council (PCEC) to urge men to get a prostate cancer screening as part of the national "Tackle Prostate Cancer" program. The Tackle Prostate Cancer program, which includes support from 13 teams around the country, hopes to encourage more than 100,000 men to be screened for prostate cancer over the course of the season.

"Prostate cancer was something we didn't have a lot of knowledge about," says Romo. "We were lucky that Dad found it early and really wanted to spread the word about the importance of screening so that others would have the same advantages."

Nearly 200,000 men will go through a similar experience this year when they are diagnosed with prostate cancer. The disease remains the second-leading cause of cancer death among American men, with more than 27,000 expected to die from it this year. When detected early, the five-year survival rate is nearly 100 percent.

While prostate cancer is often treatable when detected early, there are frequently no warning signs or symptoms in its earliest stages - making early detection and screening crucial for saving lives. For this reason, PCEC and the Romos want men to "Choose to Know - and Know to Choose." This means they should choose to know their PSA values, just as they would their cholesterol and know that there are many choices and variables in determining if they need a biopsy or treatment.

"It is as simple as this - screening saves lives," said E. David Crawford, M.D., head of the Urologic Oncology Department at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center and founder and chairman of PCEC. "We recommend that all men get a baseline prostate health assessment at 35 years of age and work with their doctors to determine a screening schedule that is right for them."

 Copyright NapsNet.com 2009