Men between the ages of 40 and 80 will have no excuse not to get tested for prostate cancer after the Man Van makes a stop in the Village of Glendon. During their regular meeting on Monday, Dec.
Men between the ages of 40 and 80 will have no excuse not to get tested for prostate cancer after the Man Van makes a stop in the Village of Glendon.
During their regular meeting on Monday, Dec. 11, village council voted unanimously in favour of providing a $3,000 sponsorship to the Prostate Cancer Centre in Calgary, to bring the Man Van to Glendon.
The program is for men aged 40 to 80, and provides free Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA) blood testing. This marks the second time the program has touched down in the village, after a successful appearance at the 2015 car show.
"We have been to Glendon before and we're very excited to return. The Man Van is a mobile health clinic that offers PSA blood tests, which is a simple test that can be used as an early indicator of prostate cancer," explained program manager Ken Rabb.
Voulunteers from the centre, who are often cancer survivors themselves, will greet potential patients by sharing their story and explaining the importance of the test. From there, residents will meet with one of the centre's healthcare professionals for a quick extraction.
"We've made it as simple as possible for guys to come out and get tested. It's a venous blood extraction. They do take it out of the veins, but it's only half a teaspoon, it's very painless," said Rabb.
From start to finish the process is expected to take less than 10-minutes, with residents receiving results in the mail up to two-weeks later. If results show higher than usual levels of PSA in the blood, the patient receives a call from the centre to discuss follow-up options.
No date has been set for the van's appearance, but village representatives have their eye on the annual car show.
"It's a great screening process and it's easy and quick to do. If it's at a big event that can be easily accessed by a lot of men in the area, that's ideal. It's a very easy, fast, and a valuable screening tool. I think it's an excellent idea. I think the car show would be a perfect fit," expressed Glendon Mayor Laura Papirny.
Since the program's inception in 2009, over 35,000 Albertans have been tested by the Man Van, with 50 per cent reporting the test to be their first ever PSA screening. According to the cancer centre, 2,400 men in Alberta are diagnosed with prostate cancer annually.
"We recommend men get checked beginning at age 40. It's something guys should ask their doctors about, they don't have to wait for the Man Van to come to Glendon. It's definitely something all men over 40 should consider," said Rabb.
