Building on the previous prostate cancer awareness campaigns, Take it Like a Man, Plumbing Problems?, and Don’t Wrestle with the Facts, Recognize the Signs promotes the lifestyle changes men must make to more successfully live with prostate cancer. “In our previous campaigns, we have attempted to identify the significant issues around prostate cancer, and present them in such a way that the message resonates with our community,” said Glenn Craig, President and CEO of the NCRF. “These social marketing campaigns are essential to successfully educate our region of the necessity for healthy lifestyles and awareness to prevent cancer. They have, in fact, exceeded our expectations where we are now at the point where other cancer programs in the province are asking us how we’ve done this; no one else in Ontario is contributing to awareness messaging in the same way.”

The Recognize the Signs campaign aims to increase awareness and change behaviours in men over the age of 50, specifically encouraging them to think about their health, prevention, and screening for prostate cancer. “In our cancer control system, our messages consistently focus as much around high standards in treatment and service delivery as they do around prevention and maintaining a healthy lifestyle,” stated Susan Pilatzke, Director of Clinical Oncology Systems. “In our region, the incidence of prostate cancer is increasing as our population ages and we must focus our efforts to increase awareness around this issue. Prostate cancer is one of the leading types of cancer in men in our region, and we must build on the awareness these campaigns generate to invest back into our system to improve access and resources.”

Prostate cancer is one of the most common and leading cancers in men in Northwestern Ontario. Over the next ten years, incidence of prostate cancer is expected to increase by 60 to 70 percent. “We have a high incidence in Northwestern Ontario, with one in eight men developing prostate cancer in their lifetime,” stated Dr. Sunil Gulavita, Head of Radiation Oncology. “Our population needs to be made aware of the symptoms of prostate cancer and bring them to the attention of their physician for testing immediately, either through a digital rectal exam or a PSA test (prostate specific antigen). If caught early, we can usually treat prostate cancer successfully.”

Through Recognize the Signs messaging to address eating habits, lifestyle, regular screening tests, and understanding your family history, Regional Cancer Care and the NCRF are hoping to bring awareness of prostate cancer into the minds of the people of Northwestern Ontario. “Regular screening is imperative,” said Alison McMullen, Director of Preventive Oncology. “When detected early, prostate cancer treatments are very manageable and successful. However, a large percentage of the population in Northwestern Ontario smokes, does not exercise, and does not eat a balanced diet, and is therefore at a greater risk of developing cancer. We want to educate our community about those risks, and we want men who are 50 and over to ask their doctor about what they can do to prevent prostate cancer.”

John Schelling is very pleased that the Recognize the Signs campaign has been created for Northwestern Ontario, as he is very aware of the negative effects of lack of knowledge, having been an educator for 35 years, and seeing the lifestyle choices made by students. He is a strong advocate of discussing your health with a physician and a healthy lifestyle, attributing this to his success after developing prostate cancer. “When they called me and requested my participation in this year’s campaign, I was really interested and excited,” he said. “I’ve followed the previous campaigns, and respected their positioning; lots of humour used to challenge and encourage men to talk about subject that tends to be taboo. We really need to get people talking about prostate cancer.”