I saved the lives of my two brothers with a blood test. (From Worcester News)

I saved the lives of my two brothers with a blood test.

10:06am Wednesday 20th May 2009 in

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AFATHER with prostate cancer saved the lives of his two brothers by persuading them to get screened for the disease.

When Tony Loach approached the age of 60 he decided to have a routine health check.

The company director who worked at Cosworth Technology in Warndon, Worcester, was looking forward to retirement and felt fit and healthy but thought it best to have a thorough check-up.

Mr Loach’s results were very good with the exception of his Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA), which was a little high. This is a blood test to measure the level of a protein released into the bloodstream when there is a problem with the prostate.

A raised PSA does not indicate prostate cancer and can be caused by other, non-life threatening problems. However, it shows the patient may be at risk from prostate cancer and needs further tests.

A prostate examination and biopsy revealed that the father-ofthree of Meadow Close, Kempsey, near Worcester did have prostate cancer.

It was then, in August 2007, that he decided to tell his family at a dinner party about his diagnosis and urged his brothers to have the same test following the advice given by his doctor.

As Tony came to terms with his diagnosis and considered different treatment options, his 57-year-old brother John Loach, of Stourbridge, was also diagnosed with prostate cancer following his check-up.

Tony said: “As soon as you hear the word ‘cancer’ it is absolutely devastating. I had no symptoms and was completely unprepared for it.

“My younger brother, John, went for tests two days later but my elder brother, George, was much more reluctant to have the test.

“It was only when John was diagnosed as having prostate cancer too that our elder brother had the test.

“His PSA was very high and the cancer had started to spread towards his stomach. My elder brother is very lucky to be alive. It could have turned out so differently.”

John, recounting his own diagnosis, said: “Immediately you fear the worst and when I was told I had cancer I felt my days were numbered.

“It was very emotional telling my wife and two sons.”

Tony was certain that he wanted to have surgery to remove the prostate, known as a prostatectomy, but was concerned about the impact of open surgery.

He was referred to consultant urologist Alan Doherty, of the Birmingham Prostate Clinic, one of a small number of UK surgeons who performs prostatectomies as keyhole surgery.

Tony had a nerve-sparing total prostatectomy – a procedure aimed at removing all cancer cells with minimal damage to the adjacent erectile nerves and bladder function.

The operation took place at the BMI Priory Hospital, Birmingham, in September 2007. Tony was in hospital for three days before returning home.

“It wasn’t a painful operation; you just experience some discomfort for the first two to three days,” he said.

“Within a week I was able to go for quarter of a mile walks and once two weeks had passed I was feeling really good.

“Incontinence is a big concern, but I was back to normal and dry within three months of the operation.”

John opted for the same procedure as Tony, which was carried out by Mr Doherty at the Priory in November 2007, just two months after his brother.

John said: “It was very frightening having prostate cancer and hard to believe that both Tony and I had the disease.

“At the same time, it was actually a great comfort being able to speak to Tony about what he had been through just two months earlier.

“Tony was really supportive and we used to speak to each other every day.”

Finally, the two brothers persuaded George to have a PSA test. Despite also having no symptoms, George, who is 65, had a very high PSA reading of 28.

George’s operation took place on December 10, 2007. George’s cancer was much more advanced than that of his two brothers.

Mr Doherty said: “George was diagnosed just in time. It underlines the fact that when a man is diagnosed with prostate cancer, his brothers should immediately inform their GP and have a PSA test.”

George, a retired driver and valeter, said: “I have a moan at Tony about all the aggravation he has caused.

“But if Tony hadn’t gone for his check-up I would have ended up in very serious trouble.

“We have always been close but going through this has brought us even closer.”

All three brothers have two sons each and want them to have a check as soon as they reach 40 because the disease runs in the family.

Their experiences have now led to the formation of a new clinic – the Family History Clinic, run by the Birmingham Prostate Clinic, which is the first of its kind in the UK to protect men with an increased risk of the disease because it runs in their family.