Prostate cancer group wants to help 'the next guy'

July 29--Bob Baker and Jim Dye are among the many men in the community who have faced diagnosis of and treatment for prostate cancer. They are also among the men who want to help others cope with the malignancy.

The two are members of the Men's Prostate Support Group that meets monthly at the Rideout Cancer Center in Marysville.

"I am not a doctor," said Baker, 68, of Yuba City, about the informational group trying to help newly diagnosed men.

"We tell them what we came through and hope to help people make the right decision. I want to help the next guy," he said.

Prostate cancer is the most common cancer, behind skin cancer, in American men, states the American Cancer Society. About one man in seven will be diagnosed with prostate cancer during his lifetime, with the average age at the time of diagnosis about 66 years.

The local support group meets at 5:30 p.m. the second Wednesday of each month at 618 Fifth St. Wives are also invited to attend.

Fliers about the group are available at the cancer center and at the Sutter North Medical Group urology department in Yuba City.

"Everyone in the (support) group is upbeat," said Dye, 62, of Colusa. "We all have the same thought -- we're there for the people who need us.'" He is the current support group meeting supervisor.

He was diagnosed in 2010, when he was 55 years old, and joined the support group the next year after being treated.

"I...didn't need it for me, but maybe I could be there to tell somebody else about it," Dye said.

Baker joined a local support group in 1998, when he was diagnosed at the age of 49.

The group, at a different location in Yuba City, included many men in their 60s-80s.

"If they were good enough to give me advice, I should be there for any new members seeking advice on what really happens,' Baker said.

Dye, encouraging people to attend the meetings, said, "Anyone who gets the word 'cancer'...it's instant panic. Our group can help you out of that panic mode."

For information about the support group, call Dye at 701-1643.

WHAT: Men's Prostate Support Group.

WHEN: 5:30 p.m. the Second Wednesday each month.

WHERE: Rideout Cancer Center, 618 Fifth St., Marysville.

CALL: Jim Dye at 701-1643,

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