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Our "Online Registration"
link will soon be live!
We urge you to take advantage of this feature so that you, your family and community may stay informed of upcoming events.
Additionally, you will be able to purchase tickets to our events through this
link making participation
more convenient than ever.
Photo©Kenneth Muhammad
About the LFPCF
In May 2003, The Louis Farrakhan Prostate Cancer Foundation (LFPCF) was launched. The launch of the foundation was themed a “party with a purpose” because it commemorated the 70th birth anniversary of the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan and a call to action for prostate cancer. The activities consisted of a press conference, prostate cancer awareness day, black-tie gala, and concert featuring Frankie Beverly & Maze.
The foundation was developed out of the intensity of Minister Farrakhan’s struggle to battle and overcome prostate cancer. The Executive Director Maria Farrakhan stated, “with this disease, most men don’t survive. We are working to ensure that all men are aware, so that we can stop the loss of life from this dreaded disease”. Minister Farrakhan revealed that most men are unaware of their status because they refuse to be tested or don’t have the health care coverage to be tested. However, “the longer you delay in finding the truth and acting on it, the less chance you have of survival”. Thus the vision of the LFPCF is:
Vision
• To provide men from urban inner cities, which have no health care, with free annual pre-screening, educational materials, medical referrals and the latest information pertaining to clinical trials and research development.Mission Statement
• To assist men and their families by providing them with an effective lifestyle change that will include a healthy diet, regular exercise program an annual check-ups. We believe with continuing support and the existing programs designed to focus on early detection, one day a cure will be found.What is prostate?
The prostate is a gland involved in the male reproductive system. It is surrounded by other glands, nerves and organs involved in sexual function. It is wrapped around the urethra and helps control the flow of urine. While you can live without a prostate, its location makes prostate cancer difficult to treat.
What is Prostate Cancer?
Prostate cancer is a common, but usually slow growing cancer, compared to other types of cancer. It's growth is fed by, and generally depends on, male hormones. In most cases, prostate cancer is an adenocarcinoma, a cancer of the epithelial cells which compose the inner lining of glands.
What Test Are Performed To Determine Prostate Cancer?
Two tests are commonly used to detect prostate cancer; a blood test, the Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA) test and a physical exam, the Digital Rectal Exam (DRE). They are usually administered by your regular doctor. Men should start yearly screening at age 40. Men with one or more high risk factors should start yearly testing earlier.
What Are The Symptoms of Prostate Cancer?
There are no noticeable symptoms of prostate cancer while it is still in the early stages, which is why screening is so critical. In more advanced stages, symptoms may include difficult or frequent urination, blood in the urine or bone pain.. Any change in the quality or quantity of semen, pain on ejaculation, loss of potency or libido should be reported to your primary care doctor. It is also good to report frequent urination at night, difficulty starting or incomplete urinating. In order to find prostate cancer in its most treatable form, it must be caught before symptoms appear.
What Are The Risk Factors of Prostate Cancer?
Risk of prostate cancer increases with age. Prostate cancer is rare for men under the age of 40, and most cases occur in men over the age of 65.
Men with a father or brother with prostate cancer are 2 times as likely to get the disease. Men with 3 relatives diagnosed with prostate cancer are almost guaranteed to get it.
African American men have a 60% higher risk of getting prostate cancer than white men, and 2 times the risk of dying from it. Hispanic men have a risk of getting prostate cancer similar to the general population, but rates of death due to the disease have not declined over recent years as they have for Caucasian and African American men.
Veterans who were exposed to Agent Orange are at increased risk. They may be 2 times as likely to get it.
Obese men those with a body mass index of over 32.5 - are 33% more likely to die from prostate cancer if diagnosed.
How Can You Prevent Prostate Cancer?
You can't prevent prostate cancer just by taking vitamins or supplements, but growing evidence says changing your diet and behavior could lower your risk. Studies show a strong connection between consumption of saturated fat and red meat and increased rates of prostate cancer diagnosis and mortality.
A number of food nutrients appear to reduce likelihood of getting cancer, including Vitamin E, Selenium, soy, green tea, and tomatoes. Large studies are underway to confirm these findings, and more cancer fighting nutrients are being discovered and studied all the time.
This information was provided courtesy of the National Prostate Cancer Coalition.
