By the end of 2021, more than 30,270 British Columbians — or more than 82 people per day — are expected to have been diagnosed with cancer this year, according to estimates from BC Cancer.
Many Canadians don’t think a diagnosis can happen to them. But as some people know all too well, cancer doesn’t discriminate.
Rod Senft found himself in that situation in 2007. Life was going pretty well, he recalls, and he wasn’t thinking about his mortality. Until he learned, at age 61, that he had prostate cancer with a high grade in the Gleason score. That meant his cancer was aggressive, not contained to the prostate, and likely to grow and spread quickly.
“They said I should probably start thinking about my life differently because my runway could be a lot shorter than I thought it would be,” he says. “It could now be three to five years.”
Together with the BC Cancer Foundation, we learn about Senft’s story and how life changes with a cancer diagnosis.
Taking control of the situation
Senft’s situation isn’t unusual. Prostate cancer is the most common form of cancer in men in Canada, and it’s the third most common cause of cancer death among men in Canada.
Still, Senft says he was shocked by his diagnosis. The father of three remembers thinking about how his daughter, Lauren Senft, hadn’t yet married and about how he might not be around for the birth of his future grandchildren. And he worried about his two sons, Riley and Derek, because Senft’s own father had died from prostate cancer.
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“It seemed like not only did I have it, but we had it in our genetic makeup,” he says. “My whole life changed very dramatically, and I started thinking about what I could do to live with cancer for as long as possible, because the prognosis was not good.”
The Vancouver business professional went ahead with radical surgery, radiation therapy, hormone therapy and operations to remove his lymph nodes. Along the way, he says, he and his family got help from BC Cancer, receiving support from oncologists, access to information about clinical trials and cutting-edge technologies, and new drugs that aren’t necessarily part of common protocols.
Senft was also introduced to prostate-specific membrane antigen imaging, known as a PSMA-PET scan, which is used to help determine a cancer’s stage and to personalize treatment plans.
“The technology allows you to be really clear as to where your cancer is so that you can come up with the best treatment option,” adds Senft, whose runway has now stretched into 14 years and counting.
Bringing PSMA-PET technology to B.C.
In the years following Senft’s diagnosis, his children have become advocates for other Canadians learning about cancer and coping with a diagnosis. Senft’s son Riley ran across Canada and raised more than a million dollars for the Vancouver Prostate Centre, where Senft sits on the board of directors.
Lauren is a member of a new program with the BC Cancer Foundation called Catalyst Ambassadors. It’s a group of young professionals whose goal is to spread the word about the work being done in B.C., support BC Cancer innovation and to encourage other young people to get involved.
“We often think of cancer as something that impacts us later on in life,” Lauren says. “The reality is, it impacts everybody at every age, because it doesn’t just impact the individual who gets the diagnosis. It impacts all the loved ones, everybody who’s on their support team, everybody cheering them on to get them through it.”
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The family also wants to spread the word about the importance of getting an early diagnosis, and credits BC Cancer Foundation for its work helping to make treatments more accessible to all British Columbians in every corner of the province.
There is now a PSMA-PET machine in Vancouver, but Senft and his daughter say that’s just a start. They’re working to help the BC Cancer Foundation in its goal to bring two more machines to Victoria and Kelowna, so that more people have access to the same treatments that helped to prolong Rod’s life.
“Considering it’s had such a big impact on my father, and we really see the benefit, it’s really important that we have the technology and get it out to other regions in the province, too,” Lauren says. “The time that we’ve been able to have — and I expect to continue to have — is largely in part because of the wonderful individuals that are here in Vancouver. I’m just so grateful and appreciative for all the work that they do.”
“I’m lucky,” Senft concludes. “I love my daughter and I got to see her married. I got to see my kids have eight grandchildren — I had none when I was diagnosed. Just think how lucky we are to get the care that we get in British Columbia, because they made that possible for me.”
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To learn more about cancer research, treatments and support, or to get involved, visit the BC Cancer Foundation website.
