When Alfred Samuels was diagnosed with advanced prostate cancer in 2012, it felt as if his world had fallen apart overnight. Doctors said surgery wasn’t an option for him because the cancer had spread beyond his prostate, and he started to lose hope. But then he joined a clinical trial and began treatment with abiraterone, a drug discovered Andrew developed by The Institute of Cancer Research scientists, which is now extending the lives of thousands of men worldwide.
Twelve years later, Alfred says: “Abiraterone has saved my life and I am grateful for that. But not everyone is as fortunate as I was to get on that trial and respond to the drug as well as I did. We need more treatments like abiraterone. Drugs that enable people to live their lives with cancer, and live them well. It’s not just about surviving, it’s about so much more.
“I’m still being treated with abiraterone and Zoladex, a hormone therapy, and I live differently now. My work is focused on being a patient advocate. I try to help men come to terms with their diagnoses and the effects of long-term treatment on their bodies.
“Over several years now I have given advice, support, awareness and education to men who have unfortunately followed a similar path. I want to be a voice of hope, inspiration and motivation for men with this disease that disproportionately affects black men, so I use my experience to engage with different cultures and ethnic groups.”
2024
