Joe Biden’s sudden diagnosis of aggressive prostate cancer has shocked the world.
Now, other men who have been blighted by late-stage disease, only being diagnosed after the disease had already spread, are stepping forward to share their stories.
When Eric White started experiencing testicular pain at 49, he blamed it on the hours he spent operating a forklift at work in a warehouse.
But when this was accompanied by extreme fatigue and weight loss, his wife Megan encouraged him to see a doctor.
The father-of-three from Alabama was initially diagnosed with epididymitis, an infection that causes swelling of a small tube at the back of the testicles that stores and transports sperm.
To treat the condition, Mr White was put on a three-week course of antibiotics and referred to a urologist, who then gave him another three-week course of the same drug.
But despite the medication, his condition deteriorated and his wife says he started experiencing ‘flow problems’ when he went to the bathroom.
She recalls: ‘It was hard for him to start urinating [and] he was dribbling. When he went back to the urologist, they decided to check his prostate, and it was hard.’
When Eric White started experiencing testicular pain at the age of 49, he put it down to spending hours at a time operating a forklift at work. But when this was accompanied by extreme fatigue and weight loss, his wife Megan encouraged him to see a doctor
This prompted doctors to order a prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test to measure the amount of proteins produced by the prostate gland.’
At 49, he was slightly too young to be getting screened regularly (most doctors only recommend it after age 55)
Mr White’s results showed high levels of PSA and he underwent a biopsy of his prostate, which revealed he had cancer.
PSA levels are generally measured in nanograms per milliliter (ng/mL).
In general, a level above 4 ng/mL is considered abnormal and may result in a recommendation for further examination.
Mr White’s reading was 19.1 ng/mL and the biopsy confirmed cancer had spread throughout his entire prostate, a small gland found only in men located just below the bladder and in front of the rectum.
It produces a fluid that contributes to semen.
In May 2024 he was diagnosed with prostate adenocarcinoma. Also known as glandular prostate cancer, it is the most common type of prostate cancer, accounting for over 95 percent of cases.
It originates in the gland cells of the prostate, which produce prostate fluid.
Over 300,000 American men are diagnosed with prostate cancer every year, and 35,000 die from the disease. It’s the most common cancer in men.
It’s also considered one of the most treatable if caught early – with a nearly 100 percent survival rate if detected while localized in the prostate.
The United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) states men ages 55 to 69 undergo prostate cancer screening every two to three years. However, those with a family history or who are at a greater risk, such as Black men, may need more frequent screening.
If cancer is found during the biopsy, MRI and CT scans may be used to determine if the disease has spread outside the prostate to other parts of the body.
The Whites were shocked to learn that Mr Whites cancer had spread to his neck, his femur and he had ‘two spots on his liver’. This made it Stage 4 cancer
While the survival rate for prostate cancer is nearly 100 percent in early stages, cancers that have spread may kill two-thirds of patients, according to National Cancer Institute data
The family was shocked to learn Mr White’s cancer had spread to his neck, his femur and he had ‘two spots on his liver’.
This meant he had stage 4 cancer, which has a five-year survival rate of around 30 percent.
Prostate cancer – also dubbed the ‘silent killer’ – is often diagnosed at later stages due to a combination of factors, including a misleading focus on urinary symptoms, a lack of awareness, and challenges in accessing or utilizing early screening methods.
Medical experts have declared it ‘inconceivable’ that former President Joe Biden‘s ‘aggressive’ form of prostate cancer was not caught earlier by doctors.
The 82-year-old’s office announced the devastating diagnosis on Sunday, saying the cancer had spread to his bones and his family were reviewing treatment options.
His cancer was given a Gleason score of 9 and a Grade Group of 5, a dire stage of the rapidly-spreading disease. The diagnosis came days after doctors found a ‘small nodule’ on his prostate.
After Mr White’s cancer was diagnosed, an appropriate treatment plan was drawn up.
In a TikTok video, his wife says: ‘[After his diagnosis] he did 10 palliative radiation treatments to his neck and his femur to help with pain.
‘His neck was really giving him a fit for a while. After that, his PSA was dropping and he was doing really good.
‘The medication that they put him on was a testosterone blocker, and that caused him to lose a lot of muscle mass [and] made him really tired, but I mean, he was doing pretty good.’
Despite making good progress, around six months later, in October 2024, Mr White started experiencing extreme pain in his pelvis.
Mrs White said it was so bad he couldn’t sleep and spent hours in the shower to try and soothe the pain.
She revealed: ‘So the pain was so bad, he would practically live in the shower.
The above graph shows the rates of new cases and deaths from prostate cancer. Over 300,000 American men are diagnosed with prostate cancer every year, and 35,000 die from the disease
The Whites hope by talking openly about their story that more men will go to get tested sooner rather than later if they feel something is wrong
‘He would take multiple showers a day. He didn’t sleep at night. He slept in the shower.
‘We went back to the oncologist and they put him on some strong pain medication, [but] it didn’t touch the pain.
‘So then when we went back again to the oncologist, they ordered a scan, and they found a tumor that was growing in his pelvis. The oncologist said that we need to get a biopsy ASAP.’
The Whites decided to go to a bigger cancer center in Georgia for the biopsy and Mr White was diagnosed with a rare and aggressive form of prostate cancer called a sarcomatoid carcinoma.
This form of the disease often develops in men who have had prior prostate cancer, and its prognosis is generally poor. There are less than 100 cases reported in literature and the average survival rate is typically around 10 months.
In her latest post, Mrs White reveals her husband had 18 more rounds of radiation to the mass in his pelvis and he is now undergoing chemotherapy.
Mr White is currently midway through his chemotherapy treatment.
Mrs White says: ‘That’s pretty much where we’re at now. We just got to wait on these scans and pray to God that this chemo is working.
‘So please, please, please keep him in your prayers.’
The Whites hope by talking openly about their story that more men will go to get tested sooner rather than later if they feel something is wrong.
