Minority Men More Likely to Get Prostate Cancer

Cancer Center offers free prostate cancer screenings during Prostate Cancer Awareness Month

  (Covington, La.) – The month of September, National Prostate Cancer Awareness Month, should be an annual reminder of the startling prostate cancer statistics that exist in our state. In research conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Louisiana ranked first in the nation per 100,000 men for prostate cancer incidence. These rates proved to be 70 percent higher in African-American men than white men, and death rates were twice as high. Due to these findings, Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center at St. Tammany Parish Hospital is offering free prostate cancer screenings during September to help detect cancer earlier, giving more minority men a chance at beating the disease. Prostate screenings are for all men age 50 and older who do not have a doctor or have not been screened in the past 12 months. Those at higher risk such as African-American men and men with a family history of prostate cancer should consider being screened beginning at age 45. The prostate cancer screening is performed by a doctor and includes a PSA blood test and physical exam. The American Cancer Society recommends discussing prostate screening with a doctor to determine if it is right for you. The following is a list of free prostate cancer screenings being offered during Prostate Cancer Awareness Month: Friday, September 13 Main’s Market 82205 Hwy 25. Folsom, LA 10 a.m. – 1 p.m. Saturday, September 21   Community Wellness Center 1505 N. Florida Blvd. Covington, LA 9 – 11 a.m. For more information, please call (225) 215-1234 or at toll-free (888) 616-4687.     Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center at St. Tammany Parish Hospital provides comprehensive cancer care that strives to positively impact the lives of cancer patients and their families on the Northshore. Services include chemotherapy, radiation therapy and surgery, as well as patient navigation, clinical trials and free community screenings. Not only do patients have access to these vital cancer services and high quality cancer care, but these services are readily available close to home.