Movember 2020: how prostate cancer survivor’s early diagnosis improved his quality of life – six warning signs of the disease
- After heeding the warning signs, early detection lead to Chui Kui-fan beating prostate cancer, and he wants more men to be aware of the dangers
- His newfound joy for life has also helped his wife with her depression. They both attended dance classes and have deepened their relationship
With the month-long Movember campaign to raise awareness of men’s health – physical and mental – under way, a prostate cancer survivor has issued a reminder to men to be mindful of changes that could need urgent attention.
Chui Kui-fan was listening to the radio when a Hong Kong government announcement about prostate cancer and its symptoms in 2009 made him listen up.
He was a busy property estate management supervisor at the time, and it dawned on him that his urinary habits had changed. As the broadcast mentioned, he had a weak flow that wasn’t smooth or focused, and halted intermittently. And, he recalls, “I never stopped feeling the urge” to pee.
In 2011, a score slightly above normal prompted a biopsy, which still did not raise alarms. A year later, though, a higher PSA score prompted another biopsy – which identified cancerous cells. Chui was 61 at the time, with no family history of prostate cancer.
The affliction is the third most common cancer in men in Hong Kong. The Hong Kong Cancer Registry noted 2,240 new cases in 2017, an increase of 17.2 per cent from 1,912 cases the previous year.
