James Crosty campaigned for the mayor's chair in the 2011 municipal election, but behind the scenes he began a personal battle with far greater consequences.
Four days before the Nov. 19 municipal election, Crosty's doctor informed him that he had prostate cancer.
"My first reaction was I didn't know what to say," he said. "You never think you are going to get it, you never think it's going to be you."
On his 50th birthday, Crosty's physician had recommended annual PSA tests - a prostate specific antigen blood test that measures a substance called prostate specific antigen that is made by the prostate. When Crosty was 56, the test results began to climb, which prompted his doctor to recommend testing every three months.
At the beginning of November 2011, Crosty went into the hospital for a biopsy. Of the eight core tests done, one came back positive and another tested suspicious.
"When the election happened, and I didn't succeed obviously, I wasn't crushed. People were more crushed around me," he said about supporters. "I thought, well, I have a few other things to deal with right now. Maybe it's a blessing in disguise it didn't happen this time around."
Crosty began a journey that included seeing an urologist and going on "active surveillance" to monitor the prostate. At the same time he learned that one of his brothers had prostate cancer, but it had gotten out of his prostate and he needed chemotherapy.
Based on family history, escalating PSA numbers and the findings of a second biopsy in November 2012, Crosty's urologist recommended surgery to remove the prostate. Crosty wanted to do a bit more research about the ramifications of having the prostate removed, but his partner of 36 years had no question about what should be done.
"From the second I heard, I said to him - rip it out, get it out. Why would you keep that? All it can do is grow," said Paul Thompson. "It doesn't matter. Suffer the consequences and rip it out."
In January 2013, Crosty underwent a four-hour surgery at Richmond Hospital to have his prostate removed. Given his age, he qualified for nerve-sparing prostatectomy, which reduces the likelihood of erectile dysfunction and incontinence.
"That's what scares everybody," Crosty said. "That's what frightens most men into not talking about it."
Having done considerable research online, Crosty said he was prepared for the possibility of incontinence.
Although family members weren't permitted in the recovery room, a nurse summoned Thompson for a brief visit.
"She said, 'James won't shut up, he keeps asking for you - you've got two minutes.' She took me in. He said, 'is everything OK, is everything OK?' I said, 'Don't worry, it's absolutely fine, they took your pancreas out and we're all good to go," he said of news that made Crosty's eye pop open. "He said, 'My pancreas! Oh my God it's worse than I thought'," Thompson laughs recalling his error. "Then I went, 'no, no, no, I mean your prostate.' The nurse looks at me and goes, 'Oh great, I am going to hear pancreas for the next two hours.' Then she kicked me out in case I created more trouble."
Crosty spent three days in hospital and later recovered at his Quayside home, all the while waiting for the results of the pathology report. In addition to the prostate, samples of the lymph nodes were taken to determine whether the cancer had spread outside the prostate gland.
"My tumor had been completely contained in the prostate. And it was a very fast growing cancer," he said. "That's why the story needs to be told. People need to know this is not something you play with."
Ecstatic to learn that's he's cancer free, Crosty invited friends to a celebration at his home on Easter Monday.
"The issue is life. That's what we are doing today. We are celebrating living today," he said. "This is what it really is about. And educating people."
The experience has led the couple to be strong advocates for the PSA test, even though it's not universally recommended by all physicians.
Although they couldn't be happier with the health care Crosty received, the men firmly believe the Medical Services Plan should cover the test.
"This needs to be covered - at least the first test, so there's a benchmark for any-one, any ages who has a possible family history of it. It should be free. The first one should be free," said Crosty of the test that costs $30 and is covered in some provinces. "If they want to charge for them after that, fine. At the end of the day, we shouldn't be charging for PSA tests. There's no excuse not to have this covered."
Following the 2011 election, Crosty was noticeably quiet on the municipal front, something that some of his political critics attributed to being a sore loser. He resurfaced last summer and launched a campaign against the city's plan to borrow up to $59 million to build an office tower atop the civic centre.
In addition to dealing with the cancer diagnosis, the couple also contended with another issue in December 2011, when Thompson's elderly mother came to live with the couple. Alice, who has dementia, had suffered four transient ischemic attacks (TIAs) or "warning strokes" as the temporary blockages are sometimes known.
"We made a commitment that we would do two months in Ontario and two months here, mainly because she had the house," Thompson said. "We did it for six months. Last year we were back there. We all went. We are sitting there trying to deal with everything at the house."
Crosty's surgery became the "hiccup" that derailed the plan to move back and forth between B.C. and Ontario. Doctors have now said it's too stressful for Alice to travel, so British Columbia will become her permanent home.
Crosty said he couldn't have gotten through the diagnosis and recovery from surgery without the support of his partner and his mother. The experience has given Crosty time to contemplate his political future.
"I sat after that surgery - I didn't know what the pathology test results were for at least four weeks afterwards. You wait," he said. "You start thinking about, did I do everything I wanted to do, did I make a difference?" - [email protected]
