prostate trouble

Not mine, I am happy to report (though it's true I can no longer pee over the garden fence), but the title of a masterclass I attended on the subject.

Most interesting was a personal account of one family's encounter with prostate cancer. Witty, moving and informative, it was the best part of the day. But part of the account enraged me: at one point, after his diagnosis had been established beyond doubt, the patient was introduced to the treatment options, namely radiotherapy or radical surgery. The merits and demerits of each technique were outlined, then the patient himself was asked to decide which course of treatment to take.
"Well, I didn't know which was best, did I?" he stated plaintively, and he was justified. I hate this practice of even some of our most senior doctors; it is truly astonishing in its arrogance. My tip if this ever happens is to bat it straight back to the doctor and say: If it was you in the same position as me, or your father, and he asked you what was the best choice, what would you say yourself? Refuse to be railroaded into taking responsibility for a decision which you are not equipped to take. Don't let them get away with it!

Humorous note: one contributor kept using the phrase "the black afro-caribbean community". I was itching to pipe up with the fact that, the last time I checked, all afro-caribbeans are black (except for albinos perhaps) therefore the prefix "black" isn't just word redundancy, it's plain stupid. But I'm far too polite to go there...