This text is a part of a two-part collection by Anissa Durham that explores the lives of Black males battling prostate most cancers. Learn half two right here. This story is copublished with CalMatters.
The evening he discovered, Jerry McCormick was alone in a resort room in Las Vegas. It was a Friday evening, the beginning of a weekend journey to see Janet Jackson in live performance. However earlier than heading out for an evening in town, he checked his e mail. A message from LabCorp was in his inbox: Biopsy outcomes.
“I used to be trying on the outcomes, and I used to be like, Oh my God,” McCormick says. He didn’t name anybody. He didn’t inform anybody. He spent the subsequent seven hours happening the Google rabbit gap on all issues prostate most cancers. The following morning, he broke the information to his husband. Richard’s response was speedy: “We’re going to beat this.”
Within the weeks that adopted, McCormick began telling shut family and friends. “When individuals hear most cancers, they’re like ‘ohhhhhh’ — you already know, that pity factor. However I don’t need to be pitied,” he says. Whereas some have been perplexed, others instantly supplied encouragement. His sister misplaced her husband in late 2024 to a distinct type of most cancers. She took it laborious. However he repeated one brief phrase to himself, “I will probably be OK.”
Within the meantime, McCormick joined Fb assist teams, began writing on Substack, and confronted the truth that he was preventing for his life. The longtime San Diego journalist, faculty professor, and pupil mentor coped one of the best ways he knew how — by telling his story.
“It’s the quiet moments that sneak up on you,” he says. “I have a tendency to remain fairly busy, however then once I get in mattress at evening, for the reason that prognosis, I take into consideration this day-after-day. Like, I’ve prostate most cancers. What am I going to do? It’s scary and surreal on the similar time.”
Most cancers is likely one of the most scary phrases that may come out of a physician’s mouth. One in eight Black males will develop prostate most cancers, in comparison with 1 in 12 white males, says Dr. Brent Rose, affiliate professor of radiation oncology on the College of California, San Diego. And Black males usually tend to be recognized at youthful ages. In consequence, the American Most cancers Society recommends African American males start prostate most cancers screenings at age 45.
Since turning 50, McCormick has gotten an annual prostate examination. Final summer time, he discovered himself getting as much as urinate six or seven instances an evening. Inside weeks of his first physician’s go to, he was recognized with prostate most cancers.
For the 57-year-old longtime San Diego journalist, the prognosis got here as a complete shock — nobody in his household has handled it.
Essentially the most broadly identified solution to verify for prostate most cancers is thru a digital rectal examination. However Dr. Rose says this isn’t as efficient as a prostate-specific antigen blood check. Current tips from the American Urological Affiliation suggest clinicians use the PSA as the primary screening check. And if needed, the digital rectal examination.
“Plenty of guys consider the digital rectal examination and begin to get nervous about it … we don’t need that to be a barrier for most cancers screening,” Dr. Rose says. “Digital rectal exams are usually not advisable.”
Prostate most cancers is disproportionately extra lethal amongst Black males as a result of they’re recognized at later phases, typically when remedy choices slim. They’ve the very best loss of life price in comparison with another racial and ethnic group, and are twice as more likely to die from the largely preventable illness. Dr. Rose has just a few theories why: entry to care, genetics, and social determinants of well being — like racism and poverty.
In September, McCormick went in for a biopsy. Half of the tissue samples got here again cancerous. Medical doctors gave him two choices: radiation or prostate most cancers removing surgical procedure. The previous requires each day remedy for a number of weeks. And the latter is, sometimes, a one-time process.
McCormick had simply began a brand new job and didn’t need to be out of the workplace for weeks. Surgical procedure carried dangers, together with infertility, however as a homosexual Black man, he doesn’t plan to have youngsters.
Even so, he was involved about how this choice would have an effect on his husband, Richard. The 2 have been collectively for 23 years. McCormick was frank about his sexual considerations.
Certainly, the tradeoff for survival typically contains sexual adjustments. In accordance with the American Most cancers Society, it’s frequent for males who’ve undergone remedy for prostate most cancers — reminiscent of surgical procedure, radiation, or hormone remedy — to expertise some type of erectile dysfunction. Males might have “dry orgasms” the place they really feel pleasure with out ejaculation. They could additionally expertise retrograde ejaculation, the place semen flows backwards into the bladder. And a few males can also leak small quantities of urine.
“The mechanics of our sexual exercise is completely different. We stroll by way of life a distinct means,” he says. So he opted for the surgical procedure because it appeared like a sooner process that may enable him to maneuver on together with his life.
McCormick wakened with out ache. It was Dec. 4, 2025, and he assumed his prostate most cancers removing surgical procedure was over. Whereas he waited to talk to the surgeon, his thoughts raced: How did the surgical procedure go?
When the surgeon entered the room, she delivered information no affected person desires to listen to. His stomach wall was too thick to penetrate, and she or he must reschedule his surgical procedure. The conclusion, she mentioned, got here solely after three small incisions had already been made on his decrease stomach.
“It was an emotional rollercoaster,” he says. Then, lastly, the anesthesia wore off, and the incision ache hit.
On the intense facet, McCormick was capable of have fun Christmas and the New Yr at dwelling with family members. His new surgical procedure date was Jan. 6, 2026. However days earlier than his process, and on the peak of flu season, McCormick received sick. Now this surgical procedure hinged on how rapidly he’d be feeling higher.
The surgeon informed him, if he’s not higher quickly, they’d must reschedule once more. Ultimately, his cough went away, and docs cleared him. The evening earlier than, McCormick was instructed to arrange with a dose of laxatives at 2 p.m. and 6 p.m., no meals after midnight, and use an antibacterial wash the morning of.
When he wakened from surgical procedure, the docs mentioned all the things went effectively. After weeks of psychological preparation, prayers, and phrases of empowerment, it appeared issues have been lastly beginning to lookup. The physician mentioned the process concerned a much bigger incision than the primary try. With the assistance of an IV drip of OxyContin and Valium, the ache was manageable. Two days later, docs gave him the inexperienced gentle to go dwelling.
“I couldn’t chuckle, speak, or breathe,” he says. “It was painful.”
On Jan. 12, he ended up within the emergency room and was later admitted to the hospital. One among his incisions had gotten contaminated.
Restoration, McCormick says, has been something however linear. He’s grieving the life he had earlier than prostate most cancers. However documenting his expertise on Substack has given him a brand new function.
“I promised myself that I might use this expertise to coach individuals,” he says. As a university professor, doing so is in his DNA. “If I do know one thing, I need different individuals to realize it. I don’t need them to get the sanitized model” of getting prostate most cancers.
“It’s scary,” he says. “Some days I’m tremendous offended. Different days I’m like, I received this.” However regardless of the numerous challenges, he credit his village — his associates, household, and coworkers — with getting him by way of all of it.
In latest months, he’s obtained flowers, a Superwoman-inspired blanket, check-in calls, and I like you texts. Estranged family reached out. Shut associates known as his husband after every surgical procedure for updates. Even his coworkers pooled their cash and received him a $200 DoorDash giftcard.
His three finest associates are his “trip or die.” If something occurs to him, he is aware of they’d drop all the things to be there.
“I’ve spent nearly all of my life giving to the world,” he says.
Now, he’s targeted on giving to himself.
And he’s fast to remind different Black males: this could occur to you, too. Prostate most cancers is treatable, particularly if it’s caught early. It’ll be just a few extra weeks earlier than he finds out if the most cancers is all gone. Within the meantime, McCormick is hopeful that this, too, shall cross.
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