WEBVTT - Why All Men Should See A Doctor w/ Dr. Cedrek McFadden 0:00:09.280 --> 0:00:13.039 What's up everybody. I'm Gammy and I'm her husband, Rodney 0:00:13.280 --> 0:00:17.799 and this is Positively GAM. How are you, babe, I'm good. 0:00:18.280 --> 0:00:21.120 Welcome back to Positively GAM. I really wanted to have 0:00:21.239 --> 0:00:25.919 you on this podcast because we're talking about men's health. Yes, 0:00:26.079 --> 0:00:29.880 and that is a great topic, especially where we are 0:00:29.880 --> 0:00:34.000 in life right now. Yeah, definitely in the aging process, 0:00:34.640 --> 0:00:36.879 having some of the issues that we're going to be 0:00:36.920 --> 0:00:41.040 discussing with Dr McFadden. Yeah. How do you feel about 0:00:41.120 --> 0:00:45.480 your relationships with doctors? You feel you feel comfortable going? 0:00:45.520 --> 0:00:48.839 I think you're you're pretty comfortable going with the doctor. Yeah, 0:00:48.880 --> 0:00:51.360 I'm I'm one of those guys that will go at 0:00:51.400 --> 0:00:54.400 the drop of a hat. I'm not you know, I'm 0:00:54.440 --> 0:00:57.800 not afraid to show up at the doctor's office like 0:00:57.840 --> 0:01:01.040 a lot of men are. Yeah. What about your friends. 0:01:01.080 --> 0:01:04.720 You feel like your friends are at this age? Yes, 0:01:05.440 --> 0:01:08.880 they they get it. Um, they're starting to you know, 0:01:08.920 --> 0:01:11.560 they'll go for pretty much anything now. But it's our 0:01:11.680 --> 0:01:13.760 younger days not so much. Yeah, that's what I was 0:01:13.760 --> 0:01:16.760 gonna say. I think I think this age as we 0:01:16.840 --> 0:01:21.000 get older, um, I think all of our friends probably 0:01:21.040 --> 0:01:27.600 are a little bit more um, cognizant about going to 0:01:27.800 --> 0:01:30.440 the doctor. But you know, in the younger back in 0:01:30.480 --> 0:01:33.560 the younger days, I don't think so. Yeah. Well, I 0:01:33.600 --> 0:01:36.160 also think there are things that are take you know, 0:01:36.360 --> 0:01:39.600 forcing them to go. Now, they're having issues that are 0:01:39.680 --> 0:01:43.679 driving them to the doctors. Yes, more so than preventive maintenance. 0:01:43.720 --> 0:01:47.199 They're going because of their having issues. Yeah, their bodies 0:01:47.360 --> 0:01:55.040 were We're falling apart, We're falling apart. Doctor Cedric McFadden 0:01:55.240 --> 0:01:59.240 is a surgeon, speaker, writer, and mentor. He's a board 0:01:59.320 --> 0:02:04.080 certified general and colorrectal surgeon and teaches as a Clinical 0:02:04.120 --> 0:02:07.840 Assistant Professor of Surgery. He treats a wide range of 0:02:07.880 --> 0:02:11.480 disorders and is a huge advocate for black men's health. 0:02:12.000 --> 0:02:15.959 Welcome Dr McFadden to positively gam. Thank you so much 0:02:15.960 --> 0:02:18.080 for having me, and thanks for lending some time to 0:02:18.240 --> 0:02:22.640 a very important topic. Absolutely, and I definitely wanted to 0:02:22.720 --> 0:02:26.639 have my husband, Rodney in this conversation because we're going 0:02:26.720 --> 0:02:30.840 to focus on men's health. So I want to start 0:02:30.880 --> 0:02:33.799 off doctor McFadden with what's your take on why it's 0:02:33.840 --> 0:02:37.320 so hard to get men to just go to the doctor. Yeah, 0:02:37.400 --> 0:02:40.640 that's a really heavy question with probably many differences. You know, 0:02:41.000 --> 0:02:44.200 I think it's our culture, right, we start off by 0:02:44.240 --> 0:02:47.000 telling young girls by the age of sixteen they need 0:02:47.040 --> 0:02:48.960 to have their first visit with their going to collegist. 0:02:49.040 --> 0:02:51.720 It's the expectation that we said early on that you're 0:02:51.720 --> 0:02:54.240 going to go to this doctor yearly, and as you 0:02:54.240 --> 0:02:56.799 get older, as you had children, you're going to see 0:02:56.800 --> 0:02:59.360 that doctor more frequently. We don't do that, for god, 0:02:59.760 --> 0:03:03.280 no telling young men at sixteen at what age they 0:03:03.280 --> 0:03:07.560 should start going to have a well male check and 0:03:07.639 --> 0:03:09.600 the frequency which they should do it. So we don't 0:03:09.600 --> 0:03:12.160 really do that culturally. And I think some people are afraid. 0:03:12.200 --> 0:03:14.600 I mean, I think forty one out of five men 0:03:14.680 --> 0:03:16.760 don't go to the doctor because they're afraid of what 0:03:16.800 --> 0:03:20.560 they're going to find out by going. Interestingly enough, Rodney 0:03:20.600 --> 0:03:22.839 said the same thing when we were having the conversation 0:03:22.960 --> 0:03:28.880 that you know, women start their relationship with healthcare very early. 0:03:28.880 --> 0:03:30.880 And I have a nurse, and I never even thought 0:03:30.919 --> 0:03:34.440 about that perspective of it. Well, and it's it's not 0:03:34.480 --> 0:03:37.680 even just a relationship, it's almost like their best friend. 0:03:37.840 --> 0:03:40.360 They sort of bond over the fact that you know, 0:03:40.440 --> 0:03:44.320 they're interesting to have a really good relationship. They formed 0:03:44.320 --> 0:03:47.160 that bond, and men don't do the same traditionally with 0:03:47.280 --> 0:03:49.800 their doctors. And you know, there could be some embarrassment 0:03:49.840 --> 0:03:52.120 for men. There could be, like I said before, some fears, 0:03:52.520 --> 0:03:54.440 and it could be the fact that perhaps they can't 0:03:54.440 --> 0:03:56.280 afford it. Do they have the insurance to get to 0:03:56.360 --> 0:03:59.520 the doctor. So many different reasons why, doctor McFadden, How 0:03:59.560 --> 0:04:02.000 do we can events more men to go to the doctor? Well, 0:04:02.040 --> 0:04:04.800 I think we we we start by, you know, having 0:04:04.840 --> 0:04:07.680 a conversation about why is it important? I mean, you know, 0:04:07.800 --> 0:04:10.600 we often talk about our cars. We get our all changes, 0:04:10.720 --> 0:04:14.040 were tires rotated. We don't wait until the car is 0:04:14.080 --> 0:04:17.240 smoking before we take it into the mechanics. We do 0:04:17.320 --> 0:04:19.400 some preventive things. Well, the same thing is true for 0:04:19.440 --> 0:04:23.560 our bodies. We don't wait until we break down to 0:04:23.680 --> 0:04:25.839 get the help that we need. So we have to 0:04:25.880 --> 0:04:28.920 acknowledge along the way and break it apart and make 0:04:28.920 --> 0:04:32.440 it easy and palatable to do these visits so that 0:04:32.480 --> 0:04:34.679 you know you're not doing everything, but you're doing small 0:04:34.760 --> 0:04:37.640 things along the way so that you have longevity and 0:04:37.640 --> 0:04:40.560 that you have great health throughout your life. How do 0:04:40.640 --> 0:04:47.120 you recommend that men even find a good doctor, because 0:04:47.160 --> 0:04:50.960 I guess you're just looking for a general practitioner. Or 0:04:51.000 --> 0:04:56.120 a family practitioner. Yeah, we often go to doctors that 0:04:56.240 --> 0:04:59.839 either our families have traditionally gone to our friends. So 0:05:00.000 --> 0:05:02.719 that's a good place to start, you know, asking your friends. 0:05:02.920 --> 0:05:05.839 You know, they know your temperament, they know what things 0:05:05.880 --> 0:05:08.040 you may be looking for. But just starting with the friends, 0:05:08.080 --> 0:05:09.880 who do you go to for a doctor? And if 0:05:09.920 --> 0:05:12.560 you're working and you have insurance, that's a great place 0:05:12.560 --> 0:05:14.800 to start because often your insurance coverage you're going to 0:05:14.880 --> 0:05:17.440 tell you who your options include. But I think aside 0:05:17.480 --> 0:05:20.039 from that, there's often a lot of spaces over the 0:05:20.080 --> 0:05:23.640 internet now with reviews and bios. We often look for 0:05:23.760 --> 0:05:26.880 sometimes people who look like us, and that could mean, 0:05:27.320 --> 0:05:30.599 you know, looking at pictures and looking at backgrounds, where'd 0:05:30.600 --> 0:05:32.880 you go to college, where'd you grow up? We generally 0:05:32.920 --> 0:05:36.160 open up to people who have commonalities whatever they are, 0:05:36.720 --> 0:05:39.280 So finding people who we are comfortable with because we're 0:05:39.279 --> 0:05:42.200 gonna be opening up to them sometimes about very sensitive 0:05:42.240 --> 0:05:46.039 topics from you know, sexually transmitted diseases or rectial dysfunction, 0:05:46.200 --> 0:05:47.479 you know, the things that you don't want to talk 0:05:47.480 --> 0:05:50.320 to anybody about. You gotta feel comfortable talking with your 0:05:50.360 --> 0:05:54.039 doctor about that. Stuffy Rodney, how did you find your doctor. 0:05:54.120 --> 0:05:57.440 I looked at bios. You just suggested that I took 0:05:57.480 --> 0:05:59.760 that route. I looked at bios and I look for 0:06:00.000 --> 0:06:03.279 anality as well. But strangely enough, I chose a woman. 0:06:03.440 --> 0:06:06.960 I feel comfortable talking to her. We do regular checks, 0:06:07.200 --> 0:06:10.640 she checks everything. I really don't have a problem with it, 0:06:10.920 --> 0:06:12.520 but I could see how that could be an issue 0:06:12.560 --> 0:06:15.520 for some men. It's pretty common, you know, just because 0:06:15.600 --> 0:06:18.200 you are you know, people often think, well, if you're 0:06:18.200 --> 0:06:20.880 a person of color, you're black for a black targe. 0:06:21.000 --> 0:06:23.360 That may not be the case. You know, your comfort 0:06:23.440 --> 0:06:26.359 level and what you're looking for male, female, old or 0:06:26.400 --> 0:06:29.840 young may come at different you know, rangers, and so 0:06:30.000 --> 0:06:32.960 that's that's the really important thing. Finding somebody who you 0:06:33.200 --> 0:06:37.000 often feel comfortable talking to, but will also listen. That's 0:06:37.000 --> 0:06:38.839 the key. Are they listening to you and are they 0:06:38.960 --> 0:06:41.960 taking your concerns and your thoughts seriously. When I'm thinking 0:06:42.040 --> 0:06:45.680 of younger men when it comes to health care, I'm 0:06:45.680 --> 0:06:49.200 thinking of Okay, girls usually get introduced to the to 0:06:49.320 --> 0:06:54.040 a Ghana collegist that somewhere between twelve and fifteen. So 0:06:54.279 --> 0:06:59.080 for young men, I'm wondering if it is typically their 0:06:59.120 --> 0:07:02.880 first experience, it's might be related to a sports injury 0:07:03.000 --> 0:07:05.400 or something like that. Well, well, I mean I think 0:07:05.440 --> 0:07:08.520 the sports physical Yeah, so before you can even start 0:07:08.600 --> 0:07:11.600 the team, you know, I remember from my days in 0:07:11.680 --> 0:07:14.920 high school that was a pretty quick exam that really 0:07:14.960 --> 0:07:18.160 didn't feel very involved. I mean, they check your heart, 0:07:18.280 --> 0:07:20.720 they check for her in years, and that's really about it, 0:07:20.760 --> 0:07:23.680 it felt. So I do think that can be the start, 0:07:24.120 --> 0:07:28.000 and often that's when they find things that need follow up. 0:07:28.080 --> 0:07:30.400 But I do think that can initiate it. But it 0:07:30.480 --> 0:07:33.080 still has to extend beyond that. So when you think 0:07:33.080 --> 0:07:38.120 about going through life stages, are there particular screening, specific 0:07:38.200 --> 0:07:42.840 screenings that men need to be looking out for like 0:07:43.200 --> 0:07:47.200 twenties and thirties and forties and fifties. What are are 0:07:47.240 --> 0:07:51.320 there specific screenings that need to be done, like women 0:07:51.360 --> 0:07:55.160 have to have to get mammograms and paps bears, and 0:07:55.280 --> 0:07:58.120 what are the things that men need to be doing. Yeah, 0:07:58.160 --> 0:08:00.120 I mean that's a great question, and I hope know 0:08:00.280 --> 0:08:02.680 all the audience has their pens and papers out because 0:08:02.720 --> 0:08:05.600 it can be exhausted to get the entire life. But 0:08:05.680 --> 0:08:08.240 let's start really quickly, you know, by twenties. I think 0:08:08.240 --> 0:08:11.200 it's important that men, first of all, establish a relationship 0:08:11.240 --> 0:08:13.440 with the doctor even before their problems. You want to 0:08:13.440 --> 0:08:15.240 find a doctor that you can trust and talk to. 0:08:15.800 --> 0:08:18.240 And so the initial things I think in your twenties 0:08:18.360 --> 0:08:21.280 is important to do some of your immunization work. That 0:08:21.400 --> 0:08:23.920 if you have a family history of certain problems such 0:08:23.960 --> 0:08:27.240 as your heart or diabetes or any of those problems, 0:08:27.280 --> 0:08:30.760 that's the time to establish that history that you can 0:08:30.800 --> 0:08:33.920 then talk with your doctor, because depending on your family history, 0:08:34.280 --> 0:08:37.680 you may be doing some screening sooner than later, so 0:08:38.240 --> 0:08:41.760 perhaps checking for you know, blood pressure, looking at for 0:08:41.880 --> 0:08:44.640 heart disease. And by your thirties, most people are going 0:08:44.679 --> 0:08:47.680 to start doing either like an e k G. They're 0:08:47.720 --> 0:08:50.600 also checking for their blood pressure and making sure their 0:08:50.679 --> 0:08:54.040 cholesterol is within check. So that's just routine blood work 0:08:54.080 --> 0:08:57.240 as well. By the time you're in your forties, especially 0:08:57.280 --> 0:09:00.760 black men, we're gonna start talking about testing for state cancer. 0:09:01.280 --> 0:09:03.160 And now that's just a blood test like a p 0:09:03.400 --> 0:09:06.120 s A that's drawn, and depending on the results of that, 0:09:06.160 --> 0:09:08.679 there may be other things that you do. Forty five 0:09:08.880 --> 0:09:11.720 is the age which now we screen for colorrectal cancer, 0:09:12.440 --> 0:09:16.840 and that's for men and women, black and white. However, 0:09:17.200 --> 0:09:20.760 if there's a family history of colorectal cancer, You're gonna 0:09:20.800 --> 0:09:24.320 begin screening ten years before that family member was affected. 0:09:24.679 --> 0:09:27.200 So if mom was forty two when she was diagnosed 0:09:27.200 --> 0:09:30.120 as colorrectal cancer, you're not waiting to forty five, You're 0:09:30.120 --> 0:09:34.760 gonna pregainst ten years earlier at thirty two looking for that. Now, 0:09:34.800 --> 0:09:40.160 did that age change recently? Did it drop? It did? Yeah, yeah, 0:09:40.320 --> 0:09:42.720 it did because we were seeing a lot of young people. 0:09:42.800 --> 0:09:46.280 I mean, we know Chadwick Boseman is one prominent example, 0:09:46.320 --> 0:09:48.720 but there have been that were diagnosed with colorectal cancer 0:09:48.800 --> 0:09:51.840 before fifty, which most of us have always thought of 0:09:51.840 --> 0:09:55.480 colorrectal cancer as an older person's disease. Unfortunately, we've seen 0:09:55.600 --> 0:09:59.199 a decreased incidents in colorectal cancer over the years, but 0:09:59.559 --> 0:10:02.760 we've seen increase in those under the age of fifty 0:10:02.800 --> 0:10:05.560 being diagnosed with colorectal cancer, so much as one point 0:10:05.640 --> 0:10:08.920 five percent per year increases, and people under the age 0:10:08.920 --> 0:10:11.680 of fifty, so that aged decreased to forty five and 0:10:11.720 --> 0:10:15.120 two thousand and seventeen, the United States Preventive Task Force 0:10:15.200 --> 0:10:18.360 echoed it, and they also recommended it last year as well. Yeah, 0:10:18.360 --> 0:10:22.560 I remember it first really becoming coming to my attention 0:10:23.080 --> 0:10:28.200 years ago when Katie Curicic's husband was diagnosed and succumbed 0:10:28.280 --> 0:10:33.000 eventually to co erective cancer, and she started bringing that 0:10:33.080 --> 0:10:38.400 whole having your colonoscopy, bringing that to the attention. And 0:10:38.440 --> 0:10:40.160 I think she had when she was one of the 0:10:40.200 --> 0:10:44.000 first people I think that had hers on camera. I 0:10:44.080 --> 0:10:47.040 remember that. Anyway, I'm glad you mentioned that. So that 0:10:47.080 --> 0:10:49.960 brings to me, like, what what is the maybe a 0:10:49.960 --> 0:10:53.080 good age where men should think about getting a colonosomy. 0:10:53.240 --> 0:10:58.000 So I think forty age, unless there's a family history, 0:10:58.440 --> 0:11:00.640 you need to do it soon, all right, and that 0:11:00.679 --> 0:11:05.000 can be you know, for all of us. So doctor, 0:11:05.240 --> 0:11:09.120 we're a debate. We're having a small debate right here. 0:11:09.160 --> 0:11:13.000 Become on, let's no, don't you do it? So Rodney's 0:11:13.040 --> 0:11:20.640 doctor has just suggested to him. Now Rodney is and 0:11:20.679 --> 0:11:24.120 he is suggested that Rodney just needs or she has 0:11:24.200 --> 0:11:27.240 suggested that he just needs to do a guyat test 0:11:27.400 --> 0:11:30.480 or you know, the testing for blood and the stool. 0:11:30.640 --> 0:11:34.280 I don't think that is enough at his age. I 0:11:34.320 --> 0:11:38.319 feel like he needs a full colonoscopy. Well, so there 0:11:38.360 --> 0:11:41.280 are other ways in which we test for color work. However, 0:11:41.679 --> 0:11:44.840 it may not be right for everybody. If you are 0:11:45.000 --> 0:11:47.800 high risk, meaning if you have a family history of 0:11:47.840 --> 0:11:51.560 colorectal cancer, or if yourself have a personal history of 0:11:51.640 --> 0:11:56.520 polyps and or cancer, if you have symptoms of colorectal 0:11:56.559 --> 0:12:00.560 cancer which includes bleeding, changes in your bowt habits, anything 0:12:00.640 --> 0:12:03.880 like that, those are not the test for you. Okay, 0:12:04.040 --> 0:12:06.120 So if you've had pilots before, you need to have 0:12:06.160 --> 0:12:09.959 a colonoscopy, and if that guyat test is positive, you're 0:12:10.000 --> 0:12:12.079 still going to come to have a colonospy. It's not 0:12:12.120 --> 0:12:15.680 a bad test at all. It's pretty straightforward, and most 0:12:15.679 --> 0:12:17.600 people say it's one of the best snapps will ever have. 0:12:18.120 --> 0:12:20.240 But the other thing you'll remember is if you're gonna 0:12:20.240 --> 0:12:22.040 do that guiant test, you're not gonna be doing it 0:12:22.080 --> 0:12:24.679 every ten years like you would a colonoscopy. You may 0:12:24.720 --> 0:12:27.280 be doing that yearly depending on the results, and then 0:12:27.320 --> 0:12:30.000 other testing may be required. So right now I think 0:12:30.040 --> 0:12:34.000 I'm doing it yearly. I'm pretty sure, and that's enough. 0:12:36.400 --> 0:12:39.920 I don't have a fight. Yeah, I don't have a 0:12:39.960 --> 0:12:42.920 family history. I've had a colonosopy and I didn't have 0:12:42.960 --> 0:12:46.360 any issues, no pilots or anything like that. So maybe 0:12:46.400 --> 0:12:50.240 that's why she's chosen that route. Yeah, I think first 0:12:50.280 --> 0:12:53.200 of all, I mean I often have this conversation patients 0:12:53.480 --> 0:12:55.920 and I tell them that, you know, some testing is 0:12:55.960 --> 0:12:58.800 better than no testing. And there are some patients that 0:12:58.840 --> 0:13:01.520 will not do colonosty, And there are other types of screenings. 0:13:01.559 --> 0:13:03.480 I mean, there's the commercials that you see now for 0:13:03.520 --> 0:13:06.240 the DNA based There's some other sort of blood tested 0:13:06.320 --> 0:13:08.720 are coming on the market, So there are some other 0:13:08.760 --> 0:13:12.040 options if a patient won't do a colonoscopy. And sometimes 0:13:12.280 --> 0:13:15.000 I'll take whatever they will give me as long as 0:13:15.000 --> 0:13:25.400 it still fits within the parameters. I want to get 0:13:25.440 --> 0:13:30.520 back to this business about men still being resistant to 0:13:30.720 --> 0:13:36.440 seeking medical evaluation, even in a preventive sense. And but 0:13:36.480 --> 0:13:39.520 I think you you talked about it earlier where it's 0:13:40.040 --> 0:13:43.640 a lot of it is could just be lack of 0:13:44.120 --> 0:13:48.440 health insurance too. So I wanted to know if there's 0:13:48.600 --> 0:13:55.439 any kind of like for women. Women can get mammograms 0:13:55.640 --> 0:13:59.800 for free. There there places that will do free screenings. 0:14:00.200 --> 0:14:03.440 Are there any options like that for men when it 0:14:03.520 --> 0:14:08.679 comes to just routine screenings, if you don't have health insurance, 0:14:08.720 --> 0:14:11.400 and if you don't have health insurance, what do you do? Yeah, 0:14:11.400 --> 0:14:13.160 that's a tough one, and that's why we see a 0:14:13.160 --> 0:14:16.439 lot of people show up with problems that are foregone 0:14:16.640 --> 0:14:19.000 and a more advanced because they didn't get the preventive 0:14:19.080 --> 0:14:23.720 things done like a colonoscopy. Most hospitals have sponsorship type 0:14:23.720 --> 0:14:27.120 programs that you can inquire about and that you may 0:14:27.160 --> 0:14:29.840 have to do some paperwork and some legwork, but it 0:14:29.880 --> 0:14:33.640 can be done through hospital sponsorships. In many cases, I've 0:14:33.640 --> 0:14:35.920 had patients tell me that they were just instructed to 0:14:35.960 --> 0:14:38.440 go to the e er, which sometimes makes the wait 0:14:38.480 --> 0:14:41.520 longer than me. You know, not be the most ideal 0:14:41.600 --> 0:14:44.120 for all parties, but sometimes that's the re option that 0:14:44.200 --> 0:14:48.400 you have. There are other organizations in full disclosure, like 0:14:48.480 --> 0:14:52.920 the Colorectal Cancer Alliance that will help with defraying some 0:14:53.000 --> 0:14:57.200 of the cost or offering other screening options for colorectal cancer. 0:14:57.360 --> 0:14:59.240 I sit on the board of one of their medical 0:14:59.360 --> 0:15:02.800 advisory committees. But I still think there are some resources 0:15:02.840 --> 0:15:05.360 that you can look into like that can offer some 0:15:05.400 --> 0:15:08.720 reduced calls as well as looking at Most cities have 0:15:08.880 --> 0:15:12.000 free medical clinics that will help send referrals out to 0:15:12.080 --> 0:15:14.800 the doctors that participate. By myself have done it for 0:15:14.880 --> 0:15:18.080 years where you'll see patients through a clinic setting where 0:15:18.080 --> 0:15:21.240 they can get reduced medical coverage, if not free. Now, 0:15:21.600 --> 0:15:25.160 in my family, that's just not an issue. I just 0:15:25.240 --> 0:15:27.480 happened to have a family where the men and the 0:15:27.640 --> 0:15:32.560 family go to the doctor all the time, like all 0:15:32.600 --> 0:15:37.600 the time, Rodney, what about you and your friends? I 0:15:37.640 --> 0:15:41.840 don't think you. I typically go through the doctor a 0:15:41.920 --> 0:15:44.640 lot at an early age. I wasn't asthmatic as a kid, 0:15:45.360 --> 0:15:47.480 and I was sick a lot. I got introduced to 0:15:47.760 --> 0:15:50.600 having relationship with doctors for that reason, and I had 0:15:50.680 --> 0:15:53.360 to go to the to the doctor weekly to get 0:15:53.360 --> 0:15:58.360 shots throughout elementary, junior high and some of high school. 0:15:58.400 --> 0:16:02.280 So those are probably allergy shots. They were, but it 0:16:02.360 --> 0:16:06.520 was so the transition was easier for me to just 0:16:06.640 --> 0:16:10.120 go to the doctor for regular health and stuff like that. 0:16:10.200 --> 0:16:12.560 A lot of my friends, on the other hand, didn't 0:16:12.560 --> 0:16:17.760 have that introduction and they struggle with going to the doctor. Yeah, 0:16:18.080 --> 0:16:20.160 but it's like people going to the dentist. Some people 0:16:20.520 --> 0:16:23.040 don't go to the dentist as a child, and therefore 0:16:23.040 --> 0:16:25.160 as an adult they have such a fear of going 0:16:25.200 --> 0:16:27.560 to the dentist because it wasn't set So have you 0:16:27.600 --> 0:16:29.920 talked to your friends and encouraged them along the way 0:16:29.920 --> 0:16:32.160 to hey, get to check up the absolutely. I mean 0:16:32.440 --> 0:16:35.840 now at this age they all go. You know, they 0:16:35.880 --> 0:16:38.920 all go because they get it. You know, as you 0:16:38.960 --> 0:16:42.320 get older, you feel your body just falling apart and 0:16:42.480 --> 0:16:55.120 not behaving. Are there any specific diseases that are more 0:16:55.160 --> 0:17:00.480 common in black men, I would think like hot blood pressure, diabete. Yeah, 0:17:00.520 --> 0:17:03.080 so the top three. You know, we always talk about 0:17:03.280 --> 0:17:07.080 heart disease, which includes all the conversations about you know, 0:17:07.160 --> 0:17:11.280 congestive heart failure. We also include high blood pressure. But 0:17:11.359 --> 0:17:14.000 then there's also cancer is also at the top of 0:17:14.080 --> 0:17:17.280 that list as well, and so there goes a lot 0:17:17.359 --> 0:17:21.280 of work towards the preventive and the treatment aspects. And 0:17:21.320 --> 0:17:23.680 there are others though. You know, diabetes is at the 0:17:23.720 --> 0:17:27.680 top of the list as well. That creates synergistic efforts 0:17:27.760 --> 0:17:31.480 with heart disease, and that may then lead to other problems. 0:17:31.560 --> 0:17:34.680 I when you think about this, if you have diabetes 0:17:34.760 --> 0:17:38.120 and it's not managed, we can then lead to kidney problems, 0:17:38.880 --> 0:17:42.120 which have not managed well, can lead to needing dialysis, 0:17:42.119 --> 0:17:45.240 which have not managed well leads to having to miss 0:17:45.240 --> 0:17:48.280 time off from work. It then is very hard to 0:17:48.480 --> 0:17:50.719 have a job if you're having to go to dalysis 0:17:51.119 --> 0:17:53.840 three days a week for four or five hours. And 0:17:53.880 --> 0:17:56.640 so you see how kind of one spark could then 0:17:56.800 --> 0:17:58.639 lead itself to get out of control to where you 0:17:58.720 --> 0:18:02.000 can never really grapple and now be able to work 0:18:02.320 --> 0:18:04.640 and now be able to continue to afford the care 0:18:04.760 --> 0:18:06.439 that she needs. You know, that's why I'd like to 0:18:06.440 --> 0:18:08.680 focus a lot on the preventive, so we don't ever 0:18:08.760 --> 0:18:11.120 get to that place where we have to be on dalysis. 0:18:11.720 --> 0:18:14.480 And what do you think some of the reasons are 0:18:14.680 --> 0:18:20.280 that these diseases are so prevalent among um black men. 0:18:21.520 --> 0:18:27.000 I'm thinking nutrition. Yeah, yeah, that's a part of it. Um. 0:18:27.080 --> 0:18:30.359 You know, genetics goes to play. But you know, we've 0:18:30.400 --> 0:18:33.760 seen studies that have shown that if you correct for 0:18:34.040 --> 0:18:39.240 just getting the good care that say their counterparts good, 0:18:40.080 --> 0:18:43.520 that the outcomes can be equally as good. Meaning are 0:18:43.560 --> 0:18:48.480 the doctors offering the same treatment, the same aggressive clinical 0:18:48.600 --> 0:18:52.480 trials for say cancer, for blackmail, I say, with somebody else. 0:18:52.960 --> 0:18:55.479 And so there's a conversation that centers around, you know, 0:18:55.480 --> 0:18:58.920 systemic racism. Being able to get time off from work 0:18:59.119 --> 0:19:01.520 to go to the doctor. If your frontline you may 0:19:01.560 --> 0:19:03.960 not be able to to get that time off and 0:19:04.080 --> 0:19:06.439 when you get to the doctor, are they talking to 0:19:06.520 --> 0:19:09.360 you a language that you can understand, And there's there 0:19:09.400 --> 0:19:13.680 any biases on either front, that then becomes a barrier 0:19:13.760 --> 0:19:17.000 to getting the good care that you deserve. And I 0:19:17.080 --> 0:19:20.760 often think about people who are on public transportation. You know, 0:19:20.960 --> 0:19:25.159 if the bus or whatever doesn't go near your doctor's office, 0:19:25.520 --> 0:19:27.000 is that going to be an issue? I mean, so 0:19:27.520 --> 0:19:30.840 there's just many layers to that. And it's not just genetics. 0:19:30.840 --> 0:19:33.000 It's not just instrition, even though that is a big 0:19:33.040 --> 0:19:35.800 part of it. You know, we can do things that 0:19:35.840 --> 0:19:39.560 can help, you know, eating well, eating fruit, eating vegetables, 0:19:40.000 --> 0:19:45.480 limiting red meat, limiting alcohol, and if you're smoking, with smoking, um, 0:19:45.840 --> 0:19:50.040 maintaining a healthy weight. Nearly you know, six of men 0:19:50.160 --> 0:19:53.960 are considered either overweight or obese, and that in itself 0:19:54.440 --> 0:19:56.600 is a red flag for other problems such as heart 0:19:56.600 --> 0:19:59.520 disease and diabetes. So there are things that we have 0:19:59.600 --> 0:20:02.359 control all over. There are things we may not have controller. 0:20:02.480 --> 0:20:04.919 But let's take care of the things that we can't control. 0:20:05.080 --> 0:20:07.560 But even when you're talking about even when you're talking 0:20:07.600 --> 0:20:10.879 about food disparity, knowing that you know a lot of 0:20:10.880 --> 0:20:15.600 times there aren't good healthy markets. You know, so access 0:20:15.760 --> 0:20:20.040 to healthy foods and is definitely an issue. Even thinking 0:20:20.080 --> 0:20:23.440 about the pandemic, I would think that has hindered people's 0:20:23.520 --> 0:20:27.680 ability to get to the doctor, having access and things 0:20:27.720 --> 0:20:31.280 like that. Um, I think it has. You know, for 0:20:31.520 --> 0:20:34.600 many of us, people didn't want to go out. No 0:20:34.600 --> 0:20:37.000 one wanted to especially think about going to a hospital. 0:20:37.440 --> 0:20:40.800 You're thinking, I don't want to go into the pandemic, 0:20:40.880 --> 0:20:43.480 and so that kept a lot of people from wanting 0:20:43.560 --> 0:20:47.320 to have important screenings like colonoscopies or just getting their 0:20:47.400 --> 0:20:51.159 routine follow up, making sure they had their medications available 0:20:51.640 --> 0:20:55.280 if they were working, keeping those funds available so they 0:20:55.280 --> 0:20:57.560 could pay for those medications, and so that kept a 0:20:57.600 --> 0:21:00.760 lot of people from out into the doctor's office. No, 0:21:00.880 --> 0:21:04.440 we continued to do televisits and seeing people over the computer, 0:21:04.560 --> 0:21:06.879 over the telephone, but yet that was a barrier for 0:21:06.960 --> 0:21:09.040 many people in getting the care and could they get 0:21:09.080 --> 0:21:12.280 an appointment because of the backlog of people trying to 0:21:12.280 --> 0:21:15.640 get into the doctor's office. Yeah. Absolutely. And one one 0:21:15.720 --> 0:21:18.679 last thing, doctor um MC that I just wanted to 0:21:18.720 --> 0:21:21.240 know that you know, it was such a shot and 0:21:22.880 --> 0:21:26.560 you know, to see the demise of Chadwick Boseman at 0:21:26.600 --> 0:21:30.640 such an early age. Did you find that more younger 0:21:30.680 --> 0:21:36.000 people were starting to come in for testing? Yeah, we did. 0:21:36.160 --> 0:21:39.919 I mean, so I actually in the upstate of South Carolina, 0:21:40.280 --> 0:21:44.280 and this is right where Chat with Boseman's from, and 0:21:44.480 --> 0:21:47.520 so I remember as soon as that happened. I mean, 0:21:47.520 --> 0:21:50.560 we're about the same age. And I mean, aside from 0:21:50.560 --> 0:21:52.960 my own feelings of wanting to make sure I was 0:21:53.000 --> 0:21:55.400 doing the right thing, I saw patients coming in who 0:21:55.400 --> 0:21:58.359 looked just like me, about my same age, who actually 0:21:58.400 --> 0:22:01.080 came in because of chat with both Osman so much 0:22:01.080 --> 0:22:02.840 to the point that one or the two that I 0:22:02.880 --> 0:22:07.080 remember specifically came in and we found early staged cancer 0:22:07.240 --> 0:22:09.680 that had he not come in because of Chat with 0:22:09.800 --> 0:22:13.560 Bozeman's death, we would have never found and he could 0:22:13.600 --> 0:22:17.120 have had a very different outcome than what he now 0:22:17.240 --> 0:22:20.360 had because he did come in just to be checked 0:22:20.440 --> 0:22:22.800 because of them hearing about chat with Boseman. So we 0:22:22.840 --> 0:22:26.040 continually hear that where people say, oh, I remember he 0:22:26.080 --> 0:22:27.919 had it, I want the same test. I want to 0:22:27.920 --> 0:22:30.200 make sure I don't have the same thing. So there's 0:22:30.240 --> 0:22:33.639 a power in the influence or the recognition you mentioned, 0:22:33.680 --> 0:22:35.919 Katie Curry, you know will did the same thing with 0:22:35.960 --> 0:22:39.720 this colonoscophy. That all helps, that all helps. And actually 0:22:39.760 --> 0:22:42.600 my daughter and I did the same thing this year. 0:22:42.680 --> 0:22:45.679 We actually had a colonos could be done. It was 0:22:45.720 --> 0:22:48.720 my daughter's first time, not my first time. Even though 0:22:48.760 --> 0:22:51.480 I was late, I was late for my second go round. 0:22:52.000 --> 0:22:54.399