Dale McGough, 58 , Orlando, FL Date of Surgery: April 24 2008
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I am a survivor. My name is Dale and this is my story on the heart-breaking theme of cancer, the
silent killer.
It affects you in a life-altering or life-ending way, but also reaches past you and crushes your loved
ones. You do not think of life in terms of those little falling granules of time left in the hourglass.
But once you are diagnosed, you realize that time is going by at an accelerated speed. That is
when I suddenly realized that if I lost this good fight, I really had no place to be properly interred.
I reflected that there really had been plenty of time. I cried when I thought about it. It was now time
to cowboy up and get things done so that others would not have to suffer due to my loss. I fired up
the computer and updated my will and developed my Advanced Care Directives. Being in the
Emergency Medical field for thirty years forces you to plan for the worst and hope for the best.
A year later, when I was scheduled for my annual exam, I wanted to get a second opinion and opted
for another doctor who was a member of the association of physicians in this local office. I thought
that she would come back to me stating that I had a simple prostate problem. Instead, she referred
me to a urologist. It should have, but that referral still didn’t throw up the big red cancer flag. You
see, I’ve hardly ever been sick because I take great care of this life-form wherein my spirit resides.
What? This urologist wants a biopsy!? This is where things began to get a little scary but the “C”
word still never entered my mind.
Now the urologist wanted to see me, but not without my wife. Something was very terrible here!
The urologist was a very patient man who was now realizing that the guy in front of him (me), a guy
who had taken care of thousands of patients and had been through those hospital doors
thousands of times, had never before remained behind as a hospital guest. And now the good
doctor had to tell this guy and his wife the awful news.
He patiently explained that this surgery could have been done the old fashioned way. Or he could
refer this quiet, still in shock, patient to the best robotic surgeon in the world. The urologist put
his ego aside and requested that my wife and I make an appointment to see a remarkable surgeon
named Dr. Patel so that we could make an informed decision. The good doctor gave us a simple
explanation as to the procedure and recovery time and we agreed to meet with Dr. Patel.
Instead of an extended stay with possibilities of infection due to the large incision that was part
and parcel of the old version of prostate removal, I had an overnight stay with my wife, and left in
the morning with five tiny holes in my abdomen. I had a drain on one side to aid in fluid removal
and a pain pump on the other side. I was able to remove the extra hardware on my own once I got
home and the medication completed its course.
I spent the next couple of weeks walking through the neighborhood, strengthening those
abdominal muscles. A point that should be added is that I spent those six weeks prior to surgery
working out and getting strong in the gym. Without my trainer, recovery time would have taken six
weeks instead of four. I was willing and able to go back to work after only three weeks but,
because boys will be boys, my surgeon would not sign a release until my fourth week into
recovery. He knew that accidents could happen at work to undo all of the magic he had performed.
I am now back in the gym working on getting back into pre-surgery shape. Six weeks can work
wonders against you. I am a really vain guy and probably a terrible patient! At 58 years old, two days
before surgery, I completed a half marathon in the Relay For Life — one of the non-profit
organizations that gets my volunteer hours. I have just completed a blood draw for my first PSA
check after surgery and came back with glowing results. I haven’t trained in over two years but I
think I’m ready to do another Walt Disney World Marathon. Leukemia is another leader in world
population reduction. This is the fundraiser I chose to work for during that event.
I could have a turn for the worse at any given time but for now it is my intention to keep the family
a little closer and complete some of those tangible dreams. Life is shorter than you might realize.
P.S. I am now the Safety Manager at Gatorland in Orlando, Florida. I am ready for my second six-
week PSA check-up and hope to come out on top as I did after the first six-week check. I have so
many more things to accomplish and cannot hope for anything less. I hope my words will bring to
light such a simple thing as a PSA exam, which could mean a more meaningful existence for
millions of men. Prostate Cancer is so prevalent throughout the world and oh-so-easy to diagnose.
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