Scott: We get asked a lot to ask other doctors this question and let me ask you the same thing. When someone gets diagnosed with cancer, what are some of the first things they should do? Because there's often a panic and a sense of fear that sets in.
Cal Streeter: I'll be honest with you. Our diagnostics are horrible. When you're diagnosed with cancer, the first place you've been procrastinating. ou've known there's something going wrong. You've had some changes to your stool habits, you've had some changes. You've had some pain you haven't been telling anybody about. Okay?
Scott: Mm-hmm.
Cal Streeter: There's some things been going on that you didn't tell anybody about. And because of our cancer treatment in America, we run scared. We don't want anybody to know we've got it.
They've been after me for 12 years to biopsy my prostate. Get out of here. The last time I, my PSA is always up a little bit. Probably the poorest test for prostate cancer. Okay?
Before I went to prison, it went sky high. I brought it down by myself. Nutritionally. Okay? But, I thought I had a urologist friend. Probably the biggest enemy I've got. Last time I saw him he said, "Well, your prostate is a little bit boggy." He said, "I'll schedule you for an ultrasound and a biopsy in two weeks." I said, "No, you won't." He said, "I'm the doctor." I said, "Yeah, but it's my body." He said, "Well, I've been a doctor longer than you have." I said, "Yeah, but I'm older than you are and you're not going to biopsy my prostate."
Well, his resident called me two days before I was supposed to have the biopsy and said, "You know, you're scheduled for a biopsy day after tomorrow." I said, "I hope you're prepared for it." He said, "what do you mean?" I said, "I'm not showing up. Better be prepared for you getting a biopsy. Besides, I had my brother check my prostate and he said it's no different than it was ten years ago." He said, "what does your brother know about prostates?" I said, "Well, he was chief of urology at the University of Chicago for a year." He said, "Well, that's what I am is Chief Resident." I said, "Yeah, but he finished." I had no patience with him at all.
But they're all the same way. You know, the prostate has a nice, thick capsule around it. You punch a hole in that, you just let a cat out of the bag you can't put back in. The only thing worse than that is a breast lump.
Scott: Why?
Cal Streetr: The most brutal test and the most ungodly test in medicine is a mammogram.
Scott: Why is that?
Cal Streeter: If you had tumor you're going to spread it all over the place, just mash it. The way you prepare a lady for a mammogram is lay her under the garage door and close the garage door on her. They're 60% accurate and the amount of damage we do is not worth the information we're getting.
I think our diagnostics are horrible. Okay? There's a lot of things you can do short of punching holes in people. If you're so interested in making a diagnosis, and by the way the tissue diagnosis does not change the way we treat at all.
Scott: Okay
Cal Streeter: Because generally what happens is the doctor goes back in the back room and punches the name in the computer and the computer decides what protocol they're going to use because they had a study program put on it.
Scott: Mm-hmm.
Cal Streeter: All right? Now here's what burns me. Okay? Patients will get surgery, they'll get chemotherapy, they'll get radiation, then they'll come see me. Give me a break.
Scott: Because, why? What do those other things do?
Cal Streeter: Because the medical profession has made all the money they can make out of them, they're dying, they give them three months to live. And now the patient is trying to find help.