Prostate group facilitator dispels myths and invites others to his group

Barry Maples facilitates the Griffith Prostate Cancer Support Group, which meets on the third Thursday of every month, 7pm at Griffith Southside Leagues Club. 

It’s a place where men, and their wives, can go to talk, share information, gain support and listen to a guest speaker. 

More than 3,000 men die every year of prostate cancer, and Mr Maples dispels some myths that deter men from taking action.

While few men like the thought of a finger being inserted up their rectum, Mr Maples said its “nothing really” and far less painful than a mammogram. 

Mr Maples also said said he knows of men as young as 25 being diagnosed with the illness. “If you’ve got a history of prostate cancer in your family, you need to have a prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test every year from the age of 40”. 

For more information on prostate cancer and the support group, email: ann.bar@bigpond.com