Sunderland legends Gary Bennett and Mick Harford handover a cheque to staff from the Urology Department at Sunderland Royal Hospital.
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00:00 Okay, Gary, obviously I came and saw you guys and did the walk. How does it feel to be here today to hand over the cheque and to summon the hospital?
00:07 For myself, it's been, I feel very honoured. And again, if it wasn't without Mick and Ron, who actually got in touch with me in regards of trying to put an event on, a walk, then I wouldn't be standing here.
00:23 I'm very honoured and hopefully what we're going to try to do is build on the work which we've done this year.
00:30 I understand you got some of your treatment at Sunderland Hospital as well at Sunderland Royal?
00:34 Yeah, I got my treatment at Sunderland General and I'll be presenting the cheque today to South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS.
00:42 Okay, and Mick, obviously you're Sunderland lad yourself, so again yourself, how does it feel to be here today to hand the cheque over to Sunderland Royal Hospital?
00:49 Very proud and honoured to be here to hand the cheque over. Obviously, the Farnsworth Museum, which is very special to both of us.
00:57 It's a great occasion and it's just something we're going to hopefully carry on and do more walks and raise more money for the hospital, yes.
01:09 Are you looking to make this an annual event?
01:11 Yes, we're looking to do this annually now. I think for the first one which we've done, it was over the moon,
01:19 overwhelmed with the amount of people who actually got involved and got right behind us, supporting us.
01:24 Since then, everybody knows now that we've had the King who was diagnosed with an enlarged prostate and that helps to obviously raise the awareness.
01:36 Yes, I'm going to ask the next question, how important is it that men once they get to a certain age do go and get chequed out?
01:41 For me, it's very important. I think since I've come out and spoke about it, the amount of people who've actually got in touch with me
01:49 or even said this is something which I've had, but obviously they haven't had that, shall we say, I wouldn't say education,
01:59 but shall we say belief to go out there and speak about it.
02:03 And yourself, Mick, just how important is it?
02:05 Well, just to echo what Gary said, it's imperative that guys of a certain age, even if you haven't got symptoms, please go and get tested.
02:14 It's just a little pinprick. I think the finger up the bum thing is obsolete now, so please don't worry about that.
02:22 And it's very, very simple to go and get chequed out.
02:26 The big reason why we did the walk and the big reason why we're here today is just to try and raise awareness for the people in the North East.
02:35 Well, Gail and Stuart, how does it feel to be here today to receive the chequering?
02:55 Well, I'm delighted to be here to receive the cheque.
02:58 I mean, obviously the money for the department is a huge boost, but really for me the main thing is the awareness that Gary and Mick are giving to prostate cancer.
03:08 I mean, we're so thankful for their efforts and what they've put themselves through for this money.
03:13 But for me, the difference between a poster and a bus stop, which people may or may not look at,
03:19 versus local heroes going the extra mile and sharing their experiences of prostate cancer, to me that's priceless.
03:27 It gets the message across. It gets the awareness across to the local population.
03:31 Just how common prostate cancer is, how curable it is, of course, at an early stage, and basically when people should seek help.
03:41 And so just how important is it that people do go and get chequed out?
03:44 Yeah, prostate cancer is incredibly common. It's the most common cancer in men.
03:49 Now, thankfully, a lot of the time it doesn't need treatment. Sometimes it does need treatment.
03:54 And the sooner we can find these patients, the better.
03:57 Now, I don't want to paint a bad picture. Most prostate cancer is curable.
04:03 And even the bad prostate cancer, our colleagues in oncology can cure it.
04:08 Well, not cure it, control it very nicely. But the sooner we catch the prostate cancer, the better.
04:15 And that's what this awareness is all about.
04:17 Any groups of people who are particularly wary about developing it and getting chequed out?
04:22 Yeah, I mean, the groups of people, the older we get, the more likely you are to get prostate cancer.
04:27 So anyone over the age of 50 should at least be thinking about having a PSA chequed.
04:32 But the groups I want to focus on are people who have a known family history of prostate cancer.
04:37 So maybe if your father died of prostate cancer or your brother's prostate cancer, you should be thinking about a cheque.
04:43 The other group I really want to highlight is the black community.
04:46 If you're black heritage, African heritage, there's no doubt you have a high risk of prostate cancer.
04:52 Now, for the general population, 1 in 8 will get a diagnosis of prostate cancer.
04:56 For the black population, it's 1 in 4 who may be in trouble with prostate cancer.
05:02 So please do go and get chequed.
05:04 - I support you. - You did more.