Coping with Prostate Cancer: Three Lawyers Speak Out
By James E. McFetridge

The late Clarence Brown

(Editor's Note: This article features the deadly disease of prostate cancer and its impact on several prominent members of our legal community. The Sacramento County Bar Association and members of the medical community at UC Davis Medical Center are developing methods of enhancing the awareness of prostate cancer and the options for treating it. This article represents a step in this joint effort at providing information about prostate cancer. Prostate cancer is treatable, and men who are fortunate enough to obtain an early diagnosis and treatment have a 100 percent rate of recovery. The stark realities of prostate cancer frequency and difficult treatment decisions facing men who are diagnosed are brought into the open by the stories of Jay-Allen Eisen, retired Sacramento Superior Court Judge Gary Ransom and the late Clarence Brown. Mr. Brown unfortunately passed away from the disease before this article could be published. Mr. Brown's comments are being posthumously published here because his passing only underscores the urgency of his message to his fellow men in the legal community to get tested for prostate cancer.)

Jay-Allen Eisen: Opting For Surgery
" What is your PSA?" This is the first question Jay-Allen Eisen asked me, half in jest, half seriously, as we delved into his recent bout with prostate cancer. Eisen explained that the Prostate Specific Antigen, or PSA, is screened in a routine blood test for men. The PSA is usually the first step in diagnosing prostate cancer.

Eisen graduated from Hastings College of the Law in 1968 and has been in practice since 1969. He is a member of the prestigious American Academy of Appellate Lawyers. He specializes in civil appeals, writs, trial court motion practice and related matters.

Eisen's first reaction to his diagnosis was that he wanted a lot of information.

"I got the sad news and the first thing I did was I went out and grabbed everything I could read," he said. He used the Internet and read books and learned there are pluses and minuses to prostate surgery, which requires removal of the prostate gland. Through his research, Eisen learned the aspects of the disease, that there are some inconsistencies in treatment options and that there is a lot that the medical profession knows and does not know about prostate cancer treatment. Eisen explained that those treating prostate cancer do not know for sure if surgery is the answer in every case because "it is a slow growing cancer."

A source of information that Eisen found to be valuable is a support group called "Man to Man." Man to Man is organized by the American Cancer Society. Men attending group sessions share their "fears, hopes, concerns and worries" about prostate cancer, Eisen said. The group sessions "stay away from any kind of judgments or from pushing particular points of view [on treatment]."

After approximately two months of research, personal deliberations and discussions with doctors and other men diagnosed with prostate cancer, Eisen "woke up and told my wife 'I think 'm going to do the surgery.'" He explained that "I could not make the choice based on what was in my head, but what I felt." Eisen decided to have "the damn thing out and be done with it." The information he obtained was useful, but not necessarily helpful for making his decision. "Making the choice has nothing to do with the information" because each choice had its pluses and minuses. Eisen recalled that someone told him the treatment options question comes down to "What can you live with?"

In spite of the diagnosis, Eisen considers himself fortunate. He said he has had "a lot of support from a lot of friends." His diagnosis has been "very scary and frightening. You face your own mortality. But you just have to face it and get on with it."

Judge Gary Ransom: Offering His Support
Having endured the process of diagnosis and treatment of prostate cancer recently, Judge Gary Ransom has a few, quick words of advice. "Take the PSA blood test. It is simple and painless." He even goes a step further, suggesting a psychological approach to confronting the process if one has to have a prostate biopsy: 'If you are asked to have a biopsy, you should consider the fact that you may have prostate cancer. If you don't have it, then you have good cause to rejoice. If you do have prostate cancer, then you've crossed that threshold (mentally) and the odds are that you will beat it."

Judge Ransom is currently retired, but sits on assignment on the criminal calendar. He graduated from McGeorge School of Law in 1974. He served as a public defender between 1974 until 1981, when he was appointed to the Sacramento County Municipal Court. Judge Ransom was elected to the Superior Court in 1988 for a term that was to begin in 1989; Governor George Deukmejian appointed him to the Superior Court to fill in that interim period.

Judge Ransom found out about three years ago that he had prostate cancer. "The worst part really is the mental anguish. You are dealing with the 'Great Unknown.' But a lot of people make it. They will have more time with medical intervention than without it and the odds say it will be quality time."

Judge Ransom is one of the founders of a prostate cancer support group that rotates meetings between Mercy Hospital and the U.C. Davis Cancer Center. He also co-founded a support group for African-American men who have been diagnosed with prostate cancer that meets at the Educational Building at Mather Airport every fourth Friday. Spouses attend those meetings as well.

Judge Ransom is quite open to talking about confronting prostate cancer, both with medical treatment and with a positive mental attitude. He pointed to new methods of surgery, as well as radiation seed therapy. "Once you consider the fact you may have cancer, then you take affirmative steps to beat it and make up your mind you are going to heal it." He understands that those who are faced with a prostate cancer diagnosis have to make up their own minds and he encourage attendance at support groups and scanning the ACS web page. Judge Ransom ended his interview with me in his chambers by offering direct support to those who are diagnosed: "If they do find out they have prostate cancer and they need someone to talk to, they can call me." His telephone number is (916) 874-5243.

Clarence Brown: The Need For Yearly Checkups
Clarence Brown passed away in April at the age of 69 after a long struggle with prostate cancer. Brown spoke about the disease in a December 2002 interview in his home off of Garden Highway.

When he was about 40 years old, Clarence Brown had a digital examination for prostate cancer. At that time, the only examination available was the digital, rectal examination, and it made him uncomfortable. Over the subsequent years, "I had offers from doctors [to take the examination], and I said 'No, I've had no problems.'" He did not know much about prostate cancer during that time.

About 10 years ago, Brown took a physical examination at Kaiser. "It was given by a female nurse practitioner and she put me through everything." Toward the end of the examination, "she said there was one more thing we hd to do, and that was a digital examination for prostate cancer." But Brown did not want the nurse practitioner to perform the exam on him. He told her "it wasn't going to happen." She immediately threatened to tear up his physical examination documents if he did not go through with the digital test, so Brown finally gave in.

After the practitioner performed the digital test, she told Brown that she wanted to have a doctor check him. "I could tell from the expression on her face that something was wrong." Brown discovered that his prostate cancer was not confined to the prostate. "My PSA was up to 37. The cancer was a comparatively active or aggressive one."

"If I had done yearly check ups, they [would have] discovered the cancer and I would not be in this position," Brown said in December 2002. Despite the long odds he faced by the diagnosis of a particularly aggressive form of prostate cancer, Brown beat them back by living well past an initial prognosis that gave him only two years to live.

During the interview at his home, Brown sat on his couch and talked of his career and his family. I met his wife, Pat, and his son, Steve, was there as well. Since his cancer became terminal, Steve and Brown's two daughters, Olivia and Sabrina, took turns staying at his home to be with him.

Brown spoke with great pride about his children. It did not take too much time to notice that Steve Brown had a career in professional football. Photographs of Steve in football uniforms and a team-autographed football are on display in Brown's living room. Steve played as a defensive back for eight years in the National Football League. He was a defensive coach for the St. Louis Rams when they won the Super Bowl. Brown showed me a readily available photograph of Steve's Super Bowl ring. "As a father, I get to brag about this" as he pointed out the ring. Brown also spoke fondly of his daughters. Olivia, his oldest child, played a leading role in the television series "Miami Vice" as an undercover police officer. She is currently on the celebrity golf tour. His other daughter, Sabrina, is the President and Chief Executive Officer of Georgia Pipe Company in Atlanta, Georgia.

Brown's legal career was a story in itself. While working at a retail store in Sacramento, Brown had a run-in with his boss and decided to go for a "long walk." He found himself at McGeorge School of Law and visited the admissions office. There, he met and spoke with Ana Rose Fisher, who told him about a course he could take while deciding whether or not to go to law school. Brown immediately signed up for the course, which he attended with third year law students. Brown was an excellent typist, having spent time as a journalist, and completed his final examination in the course before any other student. He received a B-plus in the course and decided to go to school full-time. Brown graduated from McGeorge with honors in 1964 and was the valedictorian of his class. It was not until he graduated that Fisher told him "you owe me $400," the amount of the admissions fee for enrolling at McGeorge that Fisher had secretly paid for Brown on the day he showed up at the admissions office.

Brown became the first McGeorge graduate to be hired by the California Attorney General's Office. After two years there he became the founding Executive Director of the Legal Service Program. Brown explained that the program found "representation for people who could not afford a lawyer" and represented those who ere "shut out of the legal system." Brown met a lot of interesting lawyers who became involved in the Legal Service Program. "It was a wonderful time to practice law."

Eventually, Brown went into private practice, first with Bill Morgan, a retired judge, and later with future U.S. District Judge Raul Ramirez, Phil Hiroshima and Bob Horn. Brown became a prominent criminal defense trial attorney and also handled civil matters, including civil rights cases. As Judge Ransom commented, "Clarence handled the whole gamut." Since his diagnosis, Brown remained active in his practice, notwithstanding the effects of his prostate cancer and treatments.

The difficult choices facing those diagnosed with prostate cancer are demonstrated by these three stories. The experiences of these men highlight the importance of early testing for prostate cancer and using available resources for choosing a treatment option.