The Cowboy Helping Men Through Prostate Cancer: How Max Wade Is Breaking The Silence

Wade, who lives in Rio Rancho, a suburb of Albuquerque, New Mexico, has built a life rooted in his community, where he raises goats year-round and operates a popular pumpkin patch each fall. After his prostate cancer diagnosis, he dedicated his social media platforms to raising awareness, sharing his journey, and helping other men better understand the disease.

Wade spoke with Al Roker about his mission as part of SurvivorNet’s “Shoulder To Shoulder” film, which highlights the powerful stories of men overcoming prostate cancer and redefining what it means to survive.

Directed and produced by John Palacio, the film follows three prostate cancer survivors from different walks of life — Wade, John Douglas, and Euvon Jones — as they gather in New York City for a candid conversation with longtime NBC personality Al Roker, who recently reached the five-year mark since his own prostate cancer diagnosis.

Wade’s mission to break the silence around prostate cancer is shaped by the loss of his father and observing other men struggle to open up.

“I think dad was a very prideful man, but a very private person as well. He did not show weakness … [he was] one of the guys that just, I never knew that he was ever hurting. I never knew he was in pain of any sort. Never knew that he might have been sad or upset. And I think to him maybe that was a weakness,” Wade explained.

“And also, I think like most men, there’s some embarrassing things to talk about and just would never be something that he would talk about.”

Approaching the five-year anniversary of his prostate cancer surgery in December, Wade remembers thinking about the possible challenges that came with it.

“Whether it be erectile dysfunction or incontinence, all the things that are embarrassing topics for men to talk about for sure, and they were for me as well,” he explained.

Erectile dysfunction, or not being able to get and/or maintain an erection, and incontinence, or loss of bladder control, are both possible side effects from prostate cancer treatments. Many men find it difficult or even shameful to discuss these issues.

“I’m fortunate in the fact that I’ve got a large social media following. And I felt like if I could document my journey, that other men would be able to see that there’s somebody going through it, and ‘I know this guy, or my wife knows this guy, or my sister knows this guy,’ I think it would be helpful to them.”

Wade admitted that facing prostate cancer himself gave him a new perspective on what his father may have endured. He explained that he feels sad knowing his dad navigated the fear and emotional weight of a cancer diagnosis largely on his own, and he wishes he could have been there to offer the same support and reassurance he now knows patients need.

“I can imagine him sitting there in his chair alone and having to deal with it. It’s a tough thought,” Wade admitted. “Being on social media, I thought, well, maybe I can make a difference in somebody’s life. I felt like I was fortunate to be given that platform to tell other people about it.”

Navigating the ‘Emotional Rollercoaster’

“Cowboy Max” Wade has been candid on social media about how “terrified” he felt throughout his cancer journey. He hopes that being open about his fears and emotions will encourage other men to feel comfortable doing the same.

“In my private messages and DMs, I get a lot of men who will say to me that they thank me for putting it out there, for being open about it, for spreading the word, educating them. And a lot of these guys I have conversations with,” he explained.

“It’s very emotional for me because I can so easily go back to that moment when I walked into the kitchen and my wife said, ‘you have cancer.’ And it’s scary, it’s devastating. And I know that there’s, every man that I talk to that gets that diagnosis, they go through the same, the same emotional roller coaster.”

He concluded, “It’s a struggle because like we’ve all experienced and we’re trying to change, there’s not that much out there for us as men with this particular cancer.”

Wade stressed that finding other men to talk to who have been through the same challenges with prostate cancer can be invaluable.

Prostate Cancer Awareness: What To Know

Though prostate cancer can still be difficult for many men to talk about, survivors like Wade are changing that.

This openness will, hopefully, encourage more men to keep up-to-date with recommended prostate cancer screening. For men with an average risk of prostate cancer, who do not have a family history of the disease, it’s often worth it to begin discussing screening with a prostate specific antigen (PSA) test at age 50.

However, there is some debate among major health organizations about when regular prostate cancer screening should begin.

• The United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) suggests that men age 55 to 70 discuss the risks and benefits of undergoing prostate cancer screening with PSA tests with their doctors. USPSTF recommends against screening for men older than 70.
• The American Cancer Society recommends men begin regular screening at age 50 if they have average risk, age 45 if they have a high-risk (this includes Black men and those with a family history), and age 40 for those who are considered very high-risk (typically, this means a close relative died from prostate cancer at a young age).

Have a discussion with your doctor to decide the right screening schedule for you, and consider getting screened earlier if you have risk factors such as family history.

(Content independently created by SurvivorNet with support from Novartis Pharmaceutical Corp.)

Contributing: SurvivorNet Staff

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