How One Man's Military Training Helped Him Beat Aggressive Prostate Cancer
Online, November 7, 2012 (Newswire.com) - Faced with a prostate cancer diagnosis in 2008, Chula Vista resident Donaldo Kochackis fought the battle and won. In his book, Prostate Cancer and Me, published earlier this year, he tells why he credits his military training for arming him to face the enemy and emerge victorious.
Kochackis's prostate cancer diagnosis came as a surprise. However, having already beaten colon cancer ten years earlier, Kochackis says he was not dismayed when a prostate exam showed an enlarged prostate. Subsequent tests made it clear that he had an aggressive case of prostate cancer.
"'Aggressive' was the key word here," he said. "They told me a normal PSA score for a man my age (75 at the time) was 6.5. With a PSA of 10.3, it was time for quick action.
"I knew I had it in me, because fast action had saved me more than once. Flying all over the world in an Air Force cargo plane, it had my job to stand at the edge of the cargo drop to push a load out of the plane. Hanging on for dear life! I became an old hand at cheating death.
"The experiences I had flying in the military, defying death on a daily basis, gave me the confidence I needed to meet this new challenge."
Presented with a list of treatment options to combat his prostate cancer, Kochackis didn't hesitate. External beam radiation therapy was his clear choice.
"Why external beam radiation therapy? I didn't have the slightest clue was it was," he said. "But in my flying days, we were trained to avoid walking in front of an active weather antenna because of the radiation danger. I figured that if radiation was that powerful, I wanted it in my arsenal as I went after my new enemy, Mr. Prostate Cancer. Setting survival as my top priority, I stepped forward, trusting that my doctors and The Man Upstairs would lead me to victory."
In Prostate Cancer and Me, Kochackis gives a complete rundown of how he flew through his radiation treatments in an imaginary flying machine he charged with the task of gunning down his cancer cells. The reader rides along on dramatic cancer cell attack missions, advancing from one battle station to the next - following orders from Ground Control - as the therapy apparatus progresses from one target to another on the body, targeting the cancer cells with deadly radiation.
In November 2011, with a PSA of 0.3, Kochackis was declared cancer-free.
"My military training gave me the tools I needed to win the battle against prostate cancer," he said. "All I did was use my imagination to put them to use."
What have others said about the book? Michael McConkey of Lakeside, CA, writes: "Donaldo Herrera Kochackis has illustrated the power to move beyond a diagnosis of cancer to empower oneself to battle that diagnosis. His never-ending sense of humor and mind-over-matter approach serve to empower those who are ready to armor themselves with the necessary tools to do their own private battles."
Donaldo Kochackis is the author of three books and a recognized local author with the San Diego Library. His most recent book, Prostate Cancer and Me, is available online at ProstateCancerAndMeBook.com.
Kochackis is available to speak on his experiences fighting prostate cancer and the kinds of challenges that men who elect a similar treatment can expect to encounter along the way. Email: dkochackis@gmail.com
PROSTATE CANCER FACTS:
Prostate cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in American men, behind only lung cancer. About 1 man in 36 will die of prostate cancer.
According to the American Cancer Society, one man in six will be diagnosed with prostate cancer during his lifetime. It is expected that new cases diagnosed this year will come to about 241,740, and that the year's death toll from the disease will come to about 28,170 men.
Prostate cancer occurs mainly in older men. Nearly two thirds are diagnosed in men aged 65 or older, and it is rare before age 40. The average age at the time of diagnosis is about 67.