by Bradley Parsons
staff writer
As a successful businessman whose car dealerships became synonymous with civic commitment and quality service, Mike Shad seemed the perfect speaker for Monday’s Rotary Club of Jacksonville luncheon at the Omni. Shad, however, made it clear from the start that he wasn’t there to give a speech on good business.
He was there to save lives as a cancer survivor.
Shad found out six years ago that cancer was eating away at his prostate gland. He was on his way to a Valentine’s Day dinner with his wife when his doctor told him that the invading cancer was particularly aggressive. It had probably already spread throughout his body.
Fear struck him next, he said. It was fear borne of uncertainty. In 1997, people didn’t talk about prostate cancer. The dearth of information left him with a wealth of unanswered questions. Six years later, Shad said he wants to help others find answers before they have to ask.
“Six years ago, men just didn’t talk about prostate cancer,” said Shad. “I probably wouldn’t have been invited here to talk about it, and I believe talking about it saves lives.”
Since Shad’s diagnosis, a string of high–profile cases – names like golfer Arnold Palmer, Operation Desert Storm commander Gen. Norman Schwarzkopf and New York Yankees manager Joe Torre – have brought prostate cancer into the light and saved countless lives in the process.
Shad told the Rotarians gathered inside the hotel ballroom to look around their circular tables. Of the 10 people seated at each table, he said, two of them would be touched by the disease.
For that unfortunate 20 percent, Shad said information would be as important as radiation treatments to recovery. He urged those who contracted the disease to keep pushing for new opinions and more information. Shad said he was told repeatedly that his condition was hopeless – the cancer had already spread to his lymph nodes.
After months of hearing percentages stacked against him, Shad, seeking a fourth opinion from a Houston treatment center, heard a number that finally gave him hope.
“The doctor told me he could give me 30 more years,” said Shad. “And I told him that that was the number I was looking for.”
The Houston–based clinic put Shad on an experimental treatment program that combined a cocktail of four different drugs with surgery.
In the six years following, tests have shown the cancer’s presence retreating. Those in the audience who find themselves in a similar situation should take charge of their recovery, said Shad.
“You need to know that you are in charge, not the doctors,” said Shad. “You need to get a second opinion, a third opinion. You’re not going to hurt the doctor’s feelings; they expect you to get second opinions. No matter what you’re told, keep trying and don’t give up.”
Shad is still fighting. He fights against the cancer still in his body with cutting-edge medicine. He fights against the disease by spreading the information he has gathered.
“You need to be open about it,” he said. “You need all the prayers you can get.”
Shad urged the audience to keep getting tested. The recommended frequency is once every two years until age 50, then once a year thereafter. Although some in the medical community have claimed the screenings cause false alarms and occasional false biopsies, in Shad’s experience, the tests are lifesavers.
“I have to tell you, if I didn’t have it done I wouldn’t be here today,” said Shad. “You need to do it once a year. The earlier you detect it, the more options you’re going to have.”