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David Cameron, who once held the office of Prime Minister in the UK, has opened up about his recent prostate cancer diagnosis.
At 59, Cameron shared with The Times that it was his wife, Samantha, who prompted him to seek medical advice after they listened to a compelling radio interview.
Following a prostate-specific antigen test that indicated high levels, Cameron underwent a biopsy that confirmed the presence of cancer.
Tragically, Cameron’s older sibling, Alexander, succumbed to pancreatic cancer at the same age.
Reflecting on the diagnosis, Cameron admitted, “It’s a moment you always fear might come,” in his conversation with the newspaper.
“And then literally as they’re coming out of the doctor’s mouth, you’re thinking, ‘Oh, no, he’s going to say it. He’s going to say it. Oh God, he said it.’”
Cameron said he was faced with the decision to watch and wait or undergo treatment.
He eventually opted for focal therapy, which uses electric pulses delivered by needles to eliminate cancerous cells.
More than 26,000 cases of prostate cancer were diagnosed in Australia last year.
According to the Cancer Council, about one in 12 men will get prostate cancer by the age of 70 and one-in-five will get it in their lifetime.
“I don’t particularly like discussing my personal intimate health issues, but I feel I ought to,” Cameron said.
“Let’s be honest. Men are not very good at talking about their health. We tend to put things off.
“We’re embarrassed to talk about something like the prostate because it’s so intricately connected with sexual health and everything else.
“I sort of thought, well, this has happened to you, and you should lend your voice to it.”