HOW'S YOUR PROSTATE?

A Florida psychotherapist and mystery writer recounts his prostate cancer journey.

In a straightforward, candid, and effortlessly engaging narrative, Michaels (Only in Key West, 2017) chronicles his odyssey through the traumatic ordeal of a cancer diagnosis in 2008. With little preemptive fanfare, the Key West author gets right to the heart of his memoir with the discovery that his recently tested PSA level was at its highest point ever and a classic marker for the presence of cancerous tissue. His painful, unsedated biopsy and upsetting initial diagnosis are meticulously detailed, and the remainder of his trials provides an insider’s guide to the process of detecting cancer, the methods of treatment available, and suggested alternatives to the avenues he chose for his clinical care. Michaels, “a worrier by nature,” openly shares the wide range of emotions he went through once his diagnosis was delivered and doesn’t mince words when it comes to his opinions on the detached indifference expressed by his physicians. The author’s online research about his condition produced a mixed bag of resources and data on the malady’s stigma, reputation, and the varied perceptions of the situation. Michaels’ ultimate decision to have surgery was hard won, and he shares his greatest concern involving the laparoscopic, robot-assisted procedure: irreparable nerve damage that could affect his sexual vitality. Michaels effectively supplements his cancer chronicle with an intimate narrative on his coming-out process at the age of 64, writing frankly about his 22-year childless and monogamous heterosexual relationship while harboring gay feelings that he only acted on after he and his lover parted in 2004. The author makes his story accessible and enjoyable for readers, particularly for men who are mindful of their health and appreciate Michaels’ witty and watchful approach to medicine. In striking a keen, insightful, educative, and immensely entertaining balance of humor and humanity, the author takes the dread and mystery out of a cancer diagnosis, its treatment options, and the often frustrating and unnerving hospital patient experience (including catheter maintenance and digital rectal examinations). He credits laboratory testing and early detection as the intuitive actions that “may have saved” his life. While he admits that medical procedures and techniques have improved and been revolutionized since his operation in 2008, the fear and confusion felt by patients remain unchanged. Michaels also addresses the importance of patients’ aftercare, noting that doctors in general fail to consider “the racing thoughts that keep us awake, the humiliation of incontinence, or the fear of impotence.” These, in addition to his impaired sexual wellness, were problems he contended with immediately after surgery. He writes about these issues with direct honesty and frequent infusions of humor, which, he notes, not only defuses the panicked intensity of cancer treatment, but also “affords you perspective and objectivity.”

A positive, informative, and delightful guided tour through the snarls of surviving a distressing cancer diagnosis written with comedic grace.