A man named Gary Jones was stung by a scorpion while he was enjoying his summer holidays in the heart of Spain and ended up finding out that he was having prostate cancer.
Jones was still feeling the after-effects of the scorpion sting, so he decided to meet his doctor after he returned from the holiday.
He explained the matter to Dr John McGrath, who took a simple blood test and told him that the sting of the scorpion did not cause any lasting damage, but the test led to a shocking revelation. The level of prostate-specific antigen (PSA) in Jones' blood was 3ng/ml which is higher than the normal level for a 53-year-old man, Mirror reported.
PSA is a protein produced by both normal as well as malignant cells of the prostate gland.
Though Jones was a bit worried, he knew that around three-quarters of men who have high PSA level are not always diagnosed with prostate cancer.
To stay on the safer side, he decided to be tested for the disease. He underwent a finger test, after which he spoke to the consultant what lies ahead. He also got an MRI scan done and something was detected.
He had to go through a biopsy after that, which he described as uncomfortable, unpleasant but necessary, according to the report by Mirror.
The tests' result was out a few weeks later, and they said that Jones had cancer.
He wanted to say: "So, when am I going to die exactly? And should I book a slightly more expensive holiday now rather than later?" but he said 'thank you' instead.
After knowing that he is diagnosed with cancer, he felt like a walking time bomb.
An oncologist gave a good, as well as a bad news to the 53-year-old. He told Jones that his Gleason score was seven which couldn't be ignored.
The Gleason score helps in analyzing how aggressive the cancer is. Cancer detected in the prostate was at an early stage.
Bijan Khoubehi, a surgeon, spoke to Jones and explained him about how he would conduct the prostate-removing surgery. He would cut a few tiny holes in his stomach and then remove his prostate with the help of robotic instruments.
Khoubehi informed Jones' wife that he wouldn't be able to have kids anymore after this operation as his sperm would be gone forever after his prostate would be removed.
Erectile dysfunction and incontinence are two potential side-effects of this operation.
"Precision in cutting without harming the nerve bundles necessary for an erection is imperative, and I nodded attentively," Mr Khoubehi explained.
Prostate cancer is known to be the most common non-skin cancer among American men.
