When a person is told that they have cancer of any kind, it is almost always a devastating experience.  “Why me?” “It’s just not fair”, “There is still so much I want to do”. These are just a few of the negative thoughts that go through the mind. But eventually he or she comes to the realization that a course of treatment has to be chosen and life, if possible, must go on.

I was diagnosed with prostate cancer one day after my 30th wedding anniversary. I felt all these emotions and much more. After reading all I could find about the disease, and talking to several people who had experienced different forms of treatment, I decided in consultation with my wife and urologist on a radical prostatectomy, or removal of the prostate.

Once the decision was made to have surgery, I knew that how I handled the situation mentally would make a big difference on the outcome.  I have always had a good sense of humor, some might say strange.  And I have always subscribed to the notion that there is no such thing as a bad experience. There are only good experiences and experiences that are not as good, (assuming that you can learn something from both.) After all, the mind is like a parachute. It only functions when it’s open. So, I decided to observe the reactions of those around me, especially the care providers and my friends and relatives, and use my innate sense of humor as a vaccine against the reality of the next few months.
It has been said that the purpose of satire is to strip away the pretensions and comforting half truths of institutions and organizations that take themselves far too seriously.  The medical profession is a prime example of this attitude.  And so, as a neophyte in this arena, I became a modern day Don Quixote ready to do battle against the medical windmills using humor as my lance and laughter as my shield.

There are many people who gave me their encouragement and critical advice in the preparation of this book.  But two in particular need special recognition.  They are my two co-conspirators without whose help, this book would not now be in your hands.  Roger Clayden is a long-time friend, and I had no idea that he had talent as an illustrator, until I asked him if he knew anyone that could create illustrations for a book I was writing.   His renditions provide a delightful visual cue to the many funny situations my lance and shield helped to create.

If I was destined to play Don Quixote in this melodrama, then Dr. Lionel Foster was the natural choice to play Sancho Panza, my squire.  He read my first draft and encouraged me to continue and also volunteered to be my technical consultant.  I asked him to write the foreword and the last word to the

Book. By doing this I hope to give mature men, and the women who love them, both a personal and a professional outlook on this common and potentially deadly male malady. 

This account of my adventures is intended as a beacon in the dark days ahead for those who are diagnosed with a similar affliction.  I hope it will both inform, but most of all amuse you.  

Prostate cancer has sometimes been called the male equivalent of breast cancer, and is an increasing problem for American men.  It has been estimated that 48,000 American men will die in 2000 of this disease and over three hundred fifty thousand more will be diagnosed with cancer of the prostate.   Although there have been recent accounts in the media of public figures such as General Norman Swarzcoff, Senator Bob Dole and Arnold Palmer and their treatment for prostate cancer, we rarely have had the opportunity to read an account of what this disease means to the average man on the street.  This chronicle of Mr. Gray’s journey and his fight with prostate cancer is both typical and unique at the same time.

It is typical in the way Mr. Gray found out that he had prostate cancer. Like most men of his age he had no outward symptoms, and it was only by chance during a general physical exam (the last one was five years earlier) that he had the first indication of a problem. The disease was successfully treated in a small community clinic using cutting edge technologies and newly developed capabilities in modern urology.

Mr. Gray’s medical journey is unique, because he has the ability to see humor, or more importantly he can create humor even in the most humbling of experiences. This positive and humorous attitude not only helped him through his medical treatments, it was also enormously uplifting for his family, friends and the medical staff around him. As you read this courageous account of Mr. Gray’s adventures, I hope you will come to the conclusion that prostate cancer is not the end of the world. It can be beaten especially if it is diagnosed in its early stages, and if you have a positive attitude you can have a good laugh along the way.