Early detection isn’t just about noticing symptoms — it’s about noticing changes (including lab changes) and following through.
“My first sign wasn’t a typical symptom — it was a number.”
Martin DiBello
I didn’t feel sick. No pain. No fatigue. No warning signs that would have made me think, I should get this checked.
Before my diagnosis, I lived an active life — walking several miles a day for work, enjoying the outdoors, cooking, and traveling. And like some people who feel healthy, I had one simple routine I stuck to: annual checkups.
At age 56, I went in for a routine physical, expecting everything to be normal. I felt fine — but my doctor noticed something that didn’t match my usual baseline numbers. My PSA level was elevated.
It wasn’t a symptom.
It was a change in my blood screening results.
“I couldn’t believe it,” I remember thinking. “I felt fine.”
My doctor referred me to a urologist, and I followed through quickly with 2nd and 3rd opinions, additional testing, including an MRI. That extra step confirmed what I never would have suspected: Stage 2 prostate cancer.
Early detection isn’t always a feeling — it can be a pattern, a baseline number you pay attention to. DetecTogether teaches people to recognize subtle health changes, and my story is a reminder that sometimes the earliest change isn’t something you feel — it’s something your body shows through routine blood work.
Because I kept up with my checkups, my healthcare team could catch a change from normal — and I was able to take action quickly.
My advice: I’ve told all my friends and sons: “Guys over 35 — it’s no longer just an ‘old man’s’ disease — make sure you’re screened every year and if you notice health changes, follow through even sooner.”
Prostate cancer screening can be as simple as a PSA blood test (and sometimes a digital rectal exam —DRE, depending on your doctor).
Get screened, keep track of your baseline health, even if you feel fine.
For me, early detection started with a number, and the decision to follow through caught my cancer in an earlier stage 2 with a great prognosis.
Symptoms
- Asymptomatic found at annual physical
