Now that an important medical diagnosis has entered my life, I’m going to be blogging about that from time to time, as I make my way toward surgery. There are a lot of men out there who have faced prostate cancer. I’m getting to know a few of them — from old friends and colleagues, to well-known people I’ve never met. They’ve all walked this road. I’m eager to hear their stories and share them, particularly if they can offer insight, inspiration and, most importantly, hope. Along the way, I plan to share my own story, too.
It turns out that part of the world I’ve been challenged to observe from The Deacon’s Bench is one marked by cancer. Especially, now, my own.
The first public figure I encountered who had been through my particular circumstances was travel guru Rick Steves, who had a prostatectomy two years ago and is now, happily, cancer-free.
Just today, a friend sent me this story about him that just moved on Yahoo:
Rick Steves has built a travel empire, but he still only flies economy and brings a single carry-on. At 70, it’s a formula he hasn’t outgrown — and one that still fuels him.
“Travel is my fountain of youth,” the Rick Steves’ Europe host tells Yahoo…
…Steves has been traveling for more than 50 years. The new paperback edition of On the Hippie Trail: Istanbul to Kathmandu and the Making of a Travel Writer revisits a pivotal trip he took in his 20s, the beginning of a mindset that hasn’t changed much since.
“That was the compost pile from where all of my passions sprouted,” he says.
That perspective has taken on new meaning in recent years. Steves was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2024 and is now cancer-free.
“It’s a beautiful wake-up call to how wonderful life is — and that we are mortal,” he says. “Every day is a blessing…”
…Travel keeps him physically and mentally engaged.
“I’m curious, I’m [active], I’m meeting people,” he says. “My cells feel like we’re not hibernating — we’re out there surviving. … As long as I’m physically able to do this, I can’t imagine anything more worth getting out of bed for.”
That outlook was only reinforced when he was diagnosed with prostate cancer in August 2024. He was diagnosed after a prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test.
“I was able to catch it before it metastasized,” he says. “I opted just to have the whole thing taken out,” undergoing a prostatectomy that October.
“I’m down one organ — packing lighter than ever,” he quips.
Steves is now cancer-free and undergoes quarterly checkups.
“I’ve got more energy since my cancer, because I’m embracing every day,” he says. “I find joy in contributing and learning.”
And teaching. It’s been important to talk about his experience.
“I’ve had cancer,” he says. “I’m in the brotherhood of prostate cancer survivors — just like a lot of women are in the sisterhood of breast cancer survivors — and we need to be open about it. If I hid that, I’d lose the opportunity to remind other men … to get their blood checked.”
To which I can only add: Amen. Gentlemen, check your numbers.