By Rev. Dorothy S. Boulware
Word in Black
Overview:
One in 6 Black men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer, a potentially deadly disease. However, early detection and treatment can be life-saving.
A member of Wheeler Avenue Baptist Church in Houston, Dewayne Charleston is comfortable talking openly about his belief in God. That faith was put to the test in 2009, when a doctor’s visit ended with a grim diagnosis: stage 4 prostate cancer.
Prognosis: incurable
“I never thought I would be the type of person who would get cancer,” he told KPRC-TV, a local TV station, in a recent interview. “I knew then that I was in for a journey.”
Having lived with stage 4 prostate cancer for 15 years, Dewayne Charleston is teaming up with Wheeler Avenue Baptist Church to spread the gospel of prostate-cancer screening to Black men. (Photo courtesy Dewayne Charlston/Dewayne Charleston Foundation)
Charlston’s first step on that journey was prayer, together with his physician in his office. He continued to lean on faith through surgeries, treatments and therapies. At one point he told God he would dedicate himself to educating Black men like himself and fighting the disease “if You give me more years.”
Now, 15 years after he was first diagnosed, Charleston has kept his promise with the Dewayne Charleston Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to teaching other Black men about prostate cancer and supporting those who have been diagnosed. He also connected it to his bedrock faith with a cancer screening at Wheeler Avenue Baptist Church on Sept. 21.
To honor Charleston, the church has announced it will include prostate health in its health ministry. Congregants are being encouraged to mark the occasion by wearing blue on the second Sunday in September.
Charleston “has lived and thrived with metastatic prostate cancer for more than 15 years and created his foundation to bring national awareness to the need for African American men to have annual PSA tests,” according to the church’s website. “If you have not had a PSA done this year be sure to get tested at Wheeler.”
Disparities persist
It’s an important message for Black men: according to the National Institutes of Health, 1 in 6 Black men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer, compared with one in eight White men. Making matters worse, Black men are less likely to be covered by insurance or enroll in clinical trials than White men.
Perhaps most importantly, Black men die from prostate cancer at twice the rate of White men, according to the NIH.
Charleston is attempting to counter that narrative with his namesake foundation. Aimed at Black men, the Charleston Foundation’s mission, according to its website, is “to help you re-imagine your life and to win the battle against prostate cancer. To share with you personal experiences, clinical trials. beneficial diets and exercise routines, effective treatments, implants, and the advocacy organizations that will help you to live a full and happy life.”
But he also wants to change the bigger picture, in which Black men are more likely to get diagnosed with the disease, and have worse outcomes, than Whites.
“Decreasing the racial disparity gap will not only benefit men of color, but will make the cost of medicine and treatments more efficient,” according to the foundation’s website. “In other words, use the treatments best targeted by genes and risk levels and not by color.”
In addition to his foundation, Charleston is also affiliated with the nonprofit Prostate Health Education Network’s Survivor Network (PHEN), which provides resources and support for individuals who have been diagnosed.
Spreading the Gospel of good health
The Charleston Foundation also partners with churches like Wheeler Avenue Baptist as well as other organizations to spread the gospel about prostate cancer testing and early detection. Their website offers a range of resources for churches to share with their membership and the surrounding community.
“We have collaborated with PHEN over a number of years to raise prostate cancer awareness, and we are excited to partner with PHEN to provide educational resources to our churches to support our members and communities in the fight against prostate cancer,” Rev. Dr. Natalie Mitchem, executive director of the AMEC Health Commision said in a statement. “Our goal is to save lives by increasing vital knowledge about this deadly disease.”
Despite the diagnosis and lack of a cure, Charleston has persevered in part by changing his lifestyle — including a healthy diet and plenty of exercise — and by participating in clinical trials, which are structured programs in which the medical industry tests new, cutting-edge medications on volunteers.
Charleston took an aggressive approach to his treatments and experienced a great level of success. As such, he was able to continue his active lifestyle, including a recent trip to Ghana to volunteer at the local schools. He’s still living with the disease, but it hasn’t slowed him down.
Ultimately, Charleston wants to serve as an example for men, inspiring them to take better care of themselves before it’s too late.
“Don’t be like me,” he said in the TV interview. “Don’t go 10 years — with insurance — and don’t get tested. Don’t eat fried chicken at gas stations. Take care of your health. Take care of your marriage. Take care of your family. All that begins with good health.”
This article was originally published by WordinBlack.com.
