For the first time ever, two basketball legends\u2014NBA All-Star Allan Houston and his father, the trailblazing Coach Wade Houston\u2014are stepping forward together to talk publicly about how prostate cancer changed their family forever.<\/p>\n
And they are doing it for you.<\/p>\n
Not for headlines. Not for sympathy. But because far too many Black men are still dying from a disease that is highly treatable when caught early. Because far too many families are blindsided by a diagnosis that could have been prevented or caught sooner. And because silence, especially among Black men, can cost lives.<\/p>\n
Prostate cancer is a silent crisis in the Black community. Black men are 70% more likely to be diagnosed and twice as likely<\/a> to die from the disease compared to white men. These aren\u2019t just numbers. They are fathers, brothers, uncles, teammates, coaches, mentors\u2014and they deserve better.<\/p>\n This Men\u2019s Health Month, and especially this Father\u2019s Day, the Houstons are urging Black men to change the narrative.<\/p>\n \u201cWe have to talk about it. We have to be intentional,\u201d Allan Houston says. \u201cBeing proactive about your health is not just for you\u2014it\u2019s for the people who count on you. For the people you love.\u201d<\/p>\n Houston, now Vice President of Player and Leadership Development with the New York Knicks, founder of FISLL,<\/a> and a Board Member at ZERO Prostate Cancer,<\/a> is also a prostate cancer survivor. Thirteen years after his father was diagnosed, he faced the disease himself. Their shared journey is now a rallying cry for intergenerational awareness and action.<\/p>\n Coach Wade Houston, the first Black head coach in the SEC and a man revered in the basketball world, wants Black men to hear this loud and clear: \u201cEarly detection can prevent a lot of the medical challenges that happen once it\u2019s discovered,\u201d he says. \u201cYou have to get tested\u2014especially if it runs in your family.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cSometimes it is passed from grandfather to grandson, or father to son,\u201d Coach Wade explains. And he was right to be concerned.<\/p>\n Years later, Allan noticed rising PSA levels\u2014an early warning sign. \u201cI had a heightened awareness,\u201d he says. \u201cWhen the numbers started to go up, we had deeper conversations. But until you live it, that\u2019s when the real conversation starts.\u201d<\/p>\n For both men, the experience was about more than medicine\u2014it was spiritual, emotional, and deeply personal.<\/p>\n \u201cI didn\u2019t tell my kids right away,\u201d Allan reflects. \u201cI wanted to get through it first. But when I did, I told them: God has delivered us from a lot of things. This is just another one.\u201d<\/p>\n Black men have long been taught to suffer in silence. Coach Wade knows this well. \u201cFor such a long time, it was taboo,\u201d he says. \u201cYou didn\u2019t talk about it. You didn\u2019t go to the doctor. You didn\u2019t share what was going on. But that\u2019s the worst thing you can do. You need that support.\u201d<\/p>\n Allan echoes that sentiment with a powerful sports metaphor: \u201cIn sports, you have to trust and communicate in real time. It\u2019s the same with your health. Find someone you trust\u2014your doctor, your brother, your father\u2014and start the conversation.\u201d<\/p>\n “So, you have to find someone that you trust. And for Black men, that is harder. We must be trustworthy, and we must trust someone. That’s the biggest thing for me, because once you do that,\u00a0 you can have real conversations.”<\/p>\n This isn\u2019t just about treatment. It\u2019s about legacy. About survival. About love.<\/p>\n Earlier this year, Allan joined the Board of Directors at ZERO, the nation\u2019s leading prostate cancer advocacy and support organization. And he\u2019s not just lending his name\u2014he\u2019s leveraging his platform to reach the men who need to hear this message most.<\/p>\nA Conversation That Could Save Lives<\/h2>\n
Breaking the Cycle of Silence<\/h2>\n
A Platform for Change<\/h2>\n