Dr. Roth received a moderately aggressive form of treatment that has been successful with minimal side effects, and his PSA levels have fallen back to below his baseline (normal) levels. Now he gets yearly checkups with his “real doctor” and will celebrate five years of being cancer-free in August.

Lessons Learned

Dr. Roth has always been a calm and thoughtful person, but he feels this experience has taught him many valuable lessons. The first is that he is no longer Superman and that there will be times in his life and situations he cannot control (very valuable lessons for an emergency physician!). Another is that it is necessary in such a situation to pick someone and trust that person with your health. Most physicians feel enormous relief when they can relinquish the self-diagnosing role (and thus stop being a fool) and get a “real” doctor who will give direct answers to difficult questions with no hesitation and no holds barred. He learned that you must be willing to call for help and to be aggressive when your health calls for it. “All we have,” he said, “is time, and we need to use some of this time in order to safeguard and maximize our health.”

Another lesson is that he has friends in unexpected places and can talk frankly with them about difficult topics. A local colleague, another emergency physician with metastatic prostate disease, was incredibly helpful to him in sorting through emotions and options when he was first diagnosed.

As a result of this experience, Dr. Roth feels he can relate better to patients and is able to address significant problems with them (even very serious initial diagnoses such as leukemia or lung cancer) more calmly and frankly, having the benefit of a bigger picture and with a more organized approach to model for them (though this is a challenge in a productivity-based system).

He loves going to work every day because he knows he has something to offer both patients and colleagues, especially younger ones. His most valuable skill, he believes, is his ability to be straightforward with everyone. Although this comes to him naturally, it has become easier with age and this experience, and he tries to pass it on.

Enhance Your Wellness at ACEP14

The ACEP Wellness Booth will again be located in the Member Resource Center, this year #1423, at McCormick Place West. Operating hours will be Monday, Oct. 27, through Wednesday, Oct. 29, 2014, from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Screening services will include a blood pressure check, a body composition check, a comprehensive hematology and chemistry screening panel, plus the option of one of six other tests (PSA, thyroid stimulating hormone, high-sensitivity C-reactive protein, hepatitis C antibody, vitamin D, vitamin B-12), as well as a Maslach Burnout Inventory with personalized feedback and wellness-related resource materials. The flu vaccine will also be offered. This year for the first time Hgb A1c will be included in the chemistry panel (this does not require fasting). The total value is $160, but the member cost for all of these services is $40. You may register along with your meeting registration (preferred) or purchase a ticket at the nearby Bookstore within the Resource Center.