1 in 8 men will get prostate cancer, and if you’re over 50, black, or your dad or brother had it, you’re at even higher risk. After using one of the wellpoint kiosks installed at the EMC, Gordon Laird, Process Leader in the Maintenance Central Services team, discovered he had high blood pressure. After a follow up appointment with his GP and a referral to a specialist, Gordon found out he had an aggressive type of prostate cancer.
Four years later, Gordon is cancer free, but wanted to share his story to encourage people to use the wellpoint kiosks, and for males to make sure they are aware of the signs of prostate cancer.
‘Using the wellpoint kiosk at the EMC saved my life.’ It’s a bold statement, but Gordon truly believes that using the wellpoint kiosk uncovered something that saved his life.
“Four years ago, when the wellpoint kiosks first came to the EMC, I was a team leader in assembly. On our lunch break, a few of us in the team decided to give them a go, as we hadn’t used them before.
The kiosk indicated that I had high blood pressure, which surprised me, as I have always kept myself fit and healthy. I was working a night shift at the time, so I thought it could have been that, but a couple of weeks after I went on it again and got the same result.
I called my doctor and booked an appointment, and because I was aged 50, they gave me a ‘Well Man’ test, which is basically a bit of an MOT, and they do a general check for signs of things like prostate or testicular cancer. Everything came out fine, apart from my PSA (prostate-specific antigen) test which was high. I got referred to an NHS specialist for an MRI scan and was told I had an aggressive form of prostate cancer.
I couldn’t believe it. It was also a 9 on the Gleason score (the most common system doctors use to grade prostate cancer), where anything from 8 and above is classed as high-grade cancer. What shocked me the most was that I felt completely fine within myself. The doctor told me how lucky I was to have caught it so early – and it was all thanks to that little machine at the EMC which picked up my high blood pressure.
Part of my treatment was to remove my prostate, which was 5% cancerous. Thankfully, because it was picked up so early, my treatment was very successful, and my latest PSA test was all clear.
I want to encourage everyone to use the wellpoint kiosks as they are free to use, and give you a good baseline health assessment, and may even uncover something you might need to see a doctor about. It really did save my life, as unbeknown to me, I was fit and healthy, and I didn’t have any cause for concern to go and see a doctor.
Looking after yourself is important, and I think these kiosks and the centre for wellbeing we opened a few weeks ago at the EMC really demonstrate that the company is looking out for our wellbeing. The team and I were so proud of the facility, as we built it all in-house using the skills and knowledge within the team.
So, if you’ve got the tools at your disposal at work to support you in looking out for your wellbeing, then please use them.
The Jaguar Land Rover Wellbeing website brings all of our wellbeing activity to one place, making it easier for you to find the support and information you need to help you look after your mind, body, and life.
