After he stopped responding to hormone therapy, Tom enrolled in a clinical trial that has already reduced the pain. The disease increasingly strikes younger men like Moscato. According to the American Cancer Society, roughly one-fifth of all prostate cancer diagnoses occur in men in their 40s and 50s. At the same time, doctors across the country report treating much more aggressive forms of the disease in younger patients. When prostate cancer strikes younger men, the cost to individual families and society at-large is amplified.
Businesses lose workers, who are often in the prime of their careers.
Dependent children lose fathers. Wives lose husbands. Fathers lose sons. This trend has developed just as a shift in demographics has boosted the number of men at risk for prostate cancer. The oldest members of the Baby Boom generation, which represents the largest demographic group in American history, celebrated their 50th birthdays in 1996.