Lake Ronkonkoma man uses proton-based radiation to successfully fight prostate cancer
With September being Prostate Cancer Awareness Month, Stuart Bain is sharing his story in the hope of helping others.
Lake Ronkonkoma resident Stuart Bain went to the doctor for joint pain but discovered something worse — prostate cancer.
Doctors reached the diagnosis after Bain chose to get a prostate-specific antigen, or PDA, test during a doctor's visit, which helped save him.
Bain went to the New York Proton Center, where doctors treated his cancer cells using a proton-based radiation treatment.
Now, he is cancer free and with September being Prostate Cancer Awareness Month, Bain is sharing his story in the hope of helping others.
"I was lucky," Bain said. "If you're 40-years-old, next time you get a blood test add a PSA to it. It can't hurt. It doesn't make a difference. It doesn't cost any more, just to know. It doesn't mean you're going to have cancer."
According to the American Cancer Society, one in eight men are diagnosed with prostate cancer. Bain's physician, Dr. Irini Yacoub, an attending radiation oncologist at the proton center, said prostate cancer is treatable, and many cancers can be battled with protons.
She added that early detection is key to helping save lives.
"Prostate cancer's one of the most common yet treatable cancers that we face today, and we have so many effective options for it," Yacoub said, "and many patients after treatment go on to enjoy a good quality of life after treatment, but early detection is so important."
