A new foundation has been set up in the name of the late, great Today FM DJ Tony Fenton to help men identify potential health hazards.
The Tony Fenton Foundation aims to end prostate and melanoma cancer through awareness and early detection, starting off by making men aware of the dangers posed by both skin cancer – the most widespread cancer in the world – and prostate cancer.
It was set up by Tony’s brother, Paul Fagan, following the death of the much loved former 2fm and Today FM DJ at the age of 53.
Tony was diagnosed with melanoma in 2010 and, a year later, prostate cancer. He died a year ago, on 11 March 2015.
Paul spoke to JOE about his brother’s legacy, and the importance of health checks for men of all ages.
“The foundation is something that came about since Tony died,” Paul said. “I’m not a big man for the limelight, but my friends and family convinced me of the good of it. There’s a lack of coverage of men’s health in this country and there are so many preventable deaths through lack of coverage.
“Tony was pretty depressed about his illness at the start, but he flipped that on its head and he got to show others how to deal with it. He really was pushing on with it up to when he died, so we’re just continuing what he started.”
Regular check-ups are pivotal for men of all ages, Paul insists, and even men in the 20s and 30s should be going for check-ups every couple of years.
Prostate cancer
Around one in eight Irish men will get prostate cancer at some point in their lives, with the risk increasing with age.
“Get yourself checked out,” Paul adds. “Get a baseline record of your health status, and you might get an early indication that things might need to be looked at.
“Catching it early means you could be in perfect health; not catching it early can be a lot more troublesome.”
He says that the old ‘rubber glove test’ for prostate cancer is a thing of the past – it is now indicated by PSAs (Prostate Specific Antigens) in the blood.
“Thankfully, they don’t pull on the rubber glove anymore. They rely on the blood test and they can test for many other diseases that way.”
Family history plays a big part in diagnosis of prostate cancer; you are two and a half times more likely to be diagnosed with it if your father or brother has suffered with prostate cancer, and you’re at higher risk if your sister or mother has been diagnosed with breast cancer.
Melanoma/Skin cancer
Skin cancer is the most widespread of all cancer types. In the United States, for instance, there are 3.5 million skin cancer diagnoses made each year. That’s more than all other cancers combined.
“If you’re in your 30s, you may not need to go every year, but you should still get regular health checks,” Paul says.
“Especially with melanoma, you need to look after your skin even at a young age. The melanoma started Tony’s health problems back in 2010.
“It’s a misconception that we don’t get hot weather in Ireland – if you’re wearing light clothes, put sun cream on underneath, and start making hats fashionable!”
All images: Today FM/TonyFenton.ie
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