An informational website and a mobile testing van in Philadelphia are making it easier to learn about cancer and get tested.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Hall of Fame running back Emmitt Smith will be hosting a series of short documentaries on prostate cancer for SurvivorNet<\/a>, a free information platform for all kinds of cancer.<\/p>\n “After my father was diagnosed with prostate cancer<\/a>, I learned the disease affects 1 out of 8 men,” Smith says in one of the videos.<\/p>\n SurvivorNet CEO Steve Alperin said after struggling to get the right kind of help for his sick father in Philadelphia, he started SurvivorNet.<\/p>\n “We exist for a problem that I had in my family, and that millions of families have, is that it’s too hard to figure out what to do when you get sick,” Alperin said.<\/p>\n “We serve about 5 million people a month who need help making better decisions when they get sick and feeling less alone,” Alperin said.<\/p>\n Dr. Leonard Gomella with Jefferson Health said people need to understand that a simple blood test can save lives.\u00a0<\/p>\n “Early detection of prostate cancer is very important,” he said. “SurvivorNet is one of the avenues that men can learn about prostate cancer and all the new treatments that are out there for advanced disease.”<\/p>\n Gomella said he hopes more people take advantage of Jefferson’s community outreach truck<\/a>, where men can get a PSA blood test. He said it’s especially important for Black men, who have higher rates of prostate cancer<\/a>.<\/p>\n “Men don’t know they have it, and that’s why screening is good,” he said. “Our treatments for both local cancer and advanced prostate cancer are dramatically improved over the last 10 years.”<\/p>\n John Buehler, who is 67, has had three bouts with prostate cancer. He says after surgery and other treatments, he feels great.<\/p>\n “I’m still living awesome,” he said. “And there’s not too much I can’t do.”<\/p>\n Buehler credits his supportive family and the medical team at Jefferson.<\/p>\n