On Tuesday, Ben Stiller talked about his battle with prostate cancer in his first interview since he revealed two years ago that he was diagnosed with the disease. The Zoolander appealed to men to get tested.
Stiller Was Diagnosed With Prostate Cancer At Age 48
The Emmy winner said he didn't have any symptoms at the time of the prognosis, and no one in his family had prostate cancer, but he had opted to take a prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test every year since he was 46. Two years after the first test, he was diagnosed with cancer.
"It's surreal," Stiller said during the interview. "It wasn't something I was thinking about. It wasn't on my radar at all. If it wasn't for this test, I don't think I would have had as easy a course of treatment or prognosis that I did have."
Learn Your Options And Educate Yourself
Stiller said he had his prostate removed via surgery and is now doing great after being declared cancer-free. He didn't have a hard time choosing which treatment is best even though the operation could affect his sexual life. The actor, who has been married to wife, Christine Taylor, since 2000, had to personally deal with side effects but his humour is still intact. "When you're confronted with the question of, 'Hey, do you want to live, or do you want to make sure your sex life is the best it can be?,' I opted for wanting to see what happens, and luckily everything's cool," he explains.
He advised men to talk to their doctor about prostate cancer and to get tested. "Please talk to your doctor about this. Be aware. If it was up to me every guy should get tested after the age of 40 or 45."
