June is National Men’s Health Month: Advancing prostate cancer treatment while preserving quality of life

June is a time when good baseball teams start to pull away from the pack, and a football team is beginning to take shape for the season ahead. It’s a time to honor Father’s Day, celebrate the Summer Solstice and observe National Men’s Health Month. For millions of men across the country, this June is a time to remind them to have meaningful conversations about their health with loved ones and their care team.

One in eight men will hear the words “you have prostate cancer” in their lifetime. Unfortunately, many men tend to overlook the importance of preventative care, including regular checkups, annual screenings, and discussions about family history.

This is the month to change that.

A risk that doesn’t announce itself

Prostate cancer is especially tricky. During the earliest stages, it’s silent. There can be no pain or warning signs. Prostate cancer can develop gradually and may not become noticeable until it is detected through screening or symptoms appear.

The stats are staggering. Prostate cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer among men in the U.S., excluding skin cancer. In 2026 alone, the American Cancer Society projects roughly 333,830 new cases and more than 36,000 deaths. Behind every one of those numbers is a father, a husband, a brother, a friend.

And while every man carries some degree of risk, certain factors raise the stakes considerably

• Age: About 60% of diagnoses occur in men over 65
• A close relative with prostate cancer more than doubles a man’s own risk
• Race and military service: Black men and veterans face significantly higher rates

Because the disease often hides in plain sight, routine screening and an understanding of personal risk factors aren’t just recommended; they’re essential.

A diagnosis is not the end of the story

A man sits in a doctor’s office having just heard the words “you have prostate cancer.” The word cancer hangs in the air. In that moment, the walls are closing in.

But here is the most important part: The story is far from over.

Patients today have access to more treatment options than at any point in medical history. The right path depends on several factors: cancer stage, tumor grade, age, and overall health. The most appropriate treatment approach is a personal decision based on the specific type of treatment regimen, potential side effects, and what matters most to the patient’s lifestyle and priorities.

For many men, radiation therapy offers a powerful, non-invasive route forward. And at Swedish, one technology is rewriting what’s possible.

Treatment with Swedish CyberKnife®

Picture a treatment so advanced it can track a target the size of a walnut, in real time and between closely neighboring vital organs, even as the body shifts and breathes. That’s Swedish CyberKnife®.

Unlike traditional radiation, which treats a broader area, CyberKnife® was developed for precision. It continuously detects and corrects for the natural movement of the prostate during treatment, delivering radiation with sub-millimeter accuracy. Healthy tissue is spared. The cancer is not.

It’s the difference between a floodlight and a laser, and for patients, that difference changes everything.

Uber Nerve Sparing™: Because quality of life after cancer matters

Now, here’s where the story takes a turn that many men never expected to hear.

For decades, one of the most feared consequences of prostate cancer treatment hasn’t been the cancer itself, but what treatment might take away. The nerves responsible for erectile function run perilously close to the prostate, and traditional approaches have sometimes damaged them as collateral.

Men have been quietly told, for years, that this was simply the price of survival.

The team at the Swedish Radiosurgery Center refused to accept that.

Their answer is Uber Nerve Sparing™, a breakthrough approach built on a simple but radical idea: treating the cancer aggressively and protecting a man’s quality of life are not mutually exclusive.

Here’s how it works:

• Strategic dose shaping: Radiation exposure to the critical nerve bundles surrounding the prostate is deliberately and carefully minimized.
• Advanced imaging and real-time targeting: Sensitive structures are identified and actively avoided throughout treatment.
• Extreme precision delivery: Every beam is placed with exacting accuracy, reducing unintended damage to the tissue that matters most.

The result? Physicians can pursue aggressive cancer control while meaningfully reducing the risk of sexual side effects.

Treatment that fits your life, not the other way around

Beyond precision and nerve-sparing innovation, patients remark about how little the entire treatment course impacts their daily life and work schedule:

• Just five treatment sessions
• Each session is completed in under an hour
• Most patients return to normal daily activities  almost immediately
• Reduced impact on urinary and bowel function

No hospital stays and putting life on hold. For many men, the treatment fits into their five-day work week.

Start the conversation now

Prostate cancer is highly treatable, especially when caught early. The men who fare best are the ones who understand and communicate their risk, stay current with screenings, and explore every option available.

This June, make a point to have conversations about your health. Talk to your doctor. Ask about your family history.

To learn more about CyberKnife® at Swedish and the innovative Uber Nerve Sparing™ approach, visit Swedish’s website.

CyberKnife® is a registered trademark of Accuray Incorporated and is used with permission.

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