A new survey from Urology Times caught my attention this week. It looked at the role of caregivers in the treatment journey for men with metastatic prostate cancer — and confirmed something I've heard again and again from families in this community. The partner isn't just "there for support." They're tracking symptoms. They're remembering what the doctor said. They're asking the follow-up questions. They're holding the whole thing together. And yet, they're frequently left out of formal care discussions. For those of you who've been through this — as a partner, as a family member, as the man himself — I'd love to hear your experience. What was the most important thing your caregiver did that you didn't expect? Or if you were the caregiver — what do you wish the medical team had included you in more?

Big news that came out April 28th — I wanted to make sure this community saw it. The National Comprehensive Cancer Network released updated patient guidelines on prostate cancer screening. The headline: the benefits outweigh the harms. More importantly, they've reframed the whole process to make it less intimidating. The guidelines now emphasize: - Screening is mostly a blood test. Almost no need for invasive exams anymore. - If PSA is elevated, imaging typically comes before a biopsy is even considered. - The age framework is clear: start at 40 if you're high risk, 45–75 for everyone else. - In many cases, "watch carefully" is the right call — not immediate intervention. - The full patient guidelines are free at NCCN.org/patients. For those of you who've been hesitant about screening — or who have men in your lives who keep putting it off — I'd love to know: is a clear "yes, the benefits outweigh the harms" statement from a major authority enough to move the needle? Or is the barrier something else entirely?

Welcome. You're in the right place. Whether you found your way here because something sent you searching, someone in your life nudged you in this direction, or you just had a quiet feeling it was time to pay attention — welcome. This community exists because of moments exactly like that. Let me tell you what Prostate Paladin is, why it exists, and what we're here to do together. How This Started It started at an airport. An embarrassing moment — the kind you don't forget — led to a friend pointing out that I had a prostate issue I didn't even know about. I went home that night and did what anyone would do: I opened a browser. What I found was a whole lot of nothing. Medical jargon. Scary headlines. Clinical language that felt like it was written for doctors, not for a regular man trying to understand what was happening in his own body. Nothing warm. Nothing human. Nothing that felt like it was written for me. So I wrote the thing I couldn't find. Two books came out of that research — Prostate Mania (for men navigating prostate health, diagnosis, and all the questions nobody taught us to ask) and Prostate for Women (for the partners, daughters, and women in men's lives who want to help but don't always know where to start). And now, Prostate Paladin. I'm not a clinician. I'm someone who spent years researching this, lived through it, wrote two books about it, and built a community around it. That's the frame here: the well-read friend at the table who happens to know a lot — not the doctor at the top of the article. What Is the Prostate, and Why Does It Matter? Most men couldn't point to their prostate on a diagram. That's not a failure of intelligence — it's a failure of conversation. Here's the short version: The prostate is a small, walnut-sized gland that sits just below the bladder, surrounding the urethra (the tube that carries urine out of the body). Its main job is to produce seminal fluid — the liquid that nourishes and transports sperm. It also plays a role in urinary control, sexual function, and overall reproductive health.

Before my prostate issue was pointed out to me, I did not know I had a prostate, nor that it would affect my life as I grew older. Every man has a prostate, it is a part of his pelvic region. It sits just below the bladder and surrounds the urethra. It starts off around the size of a walnut. Over time it begins to grow and eventually makes itself known. The prostate supplies fluids that are part of your ejaculate. It nourishes and protects your sperm on the way to the egg. So, as such it is a part of your reproductive system, and helps to bolster your fertility in a roundabout way. However, most men do not know this, so why are they reluctant to talk about their prostate? It is a puzzle that needs to be solved. The 3 biggest prostate issues are: 1. Enlargement - Known as BPH - Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia 2. Prostatitis - inflammation, or infection 3. Prostate Cancer - second most common cancer in men (skin cancer is #1). Roughly 1 in 8 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer. We will discuss these in greater detail in another post, for now we are focused on why nobody talks about this. I have several theories: 1. Because we do not know about our prostate we do not recognize the signs when our prostate is telling us that there is a problem. 2. Because the prostae grows so slowly (it takes 20 years for most men before we notice there is a problem)we think that this is just "normal" and everybody has the same problem. 3. Nobody has informed us that the prostate will become a problem for men as they get older. Even your doctor will not mention it unless you ask. Of course your doctor will not mention anything else unless you ask, but considering the statistics, men should be better informed. The fact of the matter is the prostate affects men everywhere in every nation. 50% of men over 50 years old 60% of men over 60 years old 70% of men over 70 years old 80% of men over 80 years old 90% of men over 90 years old These statistics are worldwide, but in reality the numbers are slightly different. Asian populations are likely to suffer less, but African Americans, African and Carribbean men are likely to suffer more - almost two times more than average. The reasons for this are not well understood, but research is ongoing, for now please pass this knowledge to the men in your life, so they know.