Louis Gossett Jr. Bounces Back After Fight with Cancer & Deadly Toxic Mold

[Guest guest]

Louis Gossett Jr. Bounces Back After Fight with Cancer & Deadly Toxic Mold

By Lynette Holloway on Aug 11th 2010 3:00PM

http://www.bvwellness.com/2010/08/11/louis-gossett-jr-fight-with-cancer/

Filed under: Interviews, Men's Health, Disease Prevention, Cancer

Anyone who has seen Louis Gossett Jr. on the big screen knows him to be a strong

character actor, from his award-winning role as the unflinching Marine Gunnery

Sergeant in 'An Officer And a Gentleman' to the example of a longtime happily

married man in 'Why Did I Get Married, Too.'

So it is unfathomable to think that nearly two years ago, doctors told him he

had only six months to live. Gossett suffered from deadly toxic mold poisoning

from his home. Later, he discovered he had prostate and kidney cancer through

routine screening. The actor writes about triumphing over death in his newly

released life-affirming memoir, 'An Actor and A Gentleman.'

" It was a downhill spiral,'' the 74-year-old California resident told Black

Voices Wellness in an interview. " I encourage every man over 45 to get annual

check ups and screenings for prostate cancer. If I hadn't, who knows what could

have happened. The only reason it was discovered was because of the screening.

That's why I encourage all black men to get regular screenings.''

He is right.

" Proportionately more African American men die of prostate cancer because they

are not screened early enough,'' Edmond , M.D. writes in 'Taking

Care of Our Own: A Black American's Guide to Family Medicine.''

Overall, prostate cancer is the most commonly diagnosed disease in men and

second only to lung cancer as the leading cause of deaths in men, according to

the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). In 2005, 185,895 men were

diagnosed with prostate cancer and 28,905 men died from it, according to the

latest statistics available from the CDC. Symptoms include difficulty with

urinating; weak, or interrupted flow of urine and frequent urination, especially

at night.

Gossett spoke with BV Wellness about surviving his illnesses and looking toward

the future.

When did you discover you were ill?

About two years ago while I started writing the book. There was toxic mold in my

home. My pets were dying and I didn't know why. They were affected first because

they were closest to the ground. Then I started to get sick from just sitting on

the couch and it prevented me from working. I stayed there long enough for it to

really get to me. I was sick but the doctors didn't know what was wrong.

The doctor said, " You really don't have long to live – about six months. "

Fortunately, I went to a Chinese doctor. He looked at me, ran some tests and

said, " You have mold and an infection in your system that I haven't seen in a

long time. " I started transfusions and massive antibiotics, which takes all of

your resistance away. Slowly and surely I started to come to life.

Eventually, the six months I had to live passed by. Then I wound up with cancer

of the kidney. They took one kidney out. I kept on fighting and they found

cancer in the prostate. I got over that and slowly but surely I started to come

to life and today is the best day of my life.

What happened to the house?

I tore down the house and rebuilt it. I treated the wood, that way the mold

would not come back. The mold came from mildew beneath the wall-to-wall carpet

so I threw that out. There was a slow leak underneath the house over the last 15

years that caused the mold to develop. I had no idea because I was hardly home.

You always look so strong and vibrant in front of the camera, how do you manage

that?

It's what saved me, I guess. You saw the results of the mold illness when I

filmed 'Jasper', 'Texas' and 'Lackawanna Blues'. I was getting old real quick.

The uphill is when you see me in 'Why Did I get Married, Too.' Other than that,

I was able to mask it.

So the mold was attacking you for a long period of time?

Yes, I just didn't know it.

Did you ever feel the effects of prostate cancer?

It was discovered early enough through routine testing for me to get rid of it.

I'm 74; I have to keep an eye on things on a daily basis. As we get over 45 and

50, we have to get physicals twice a year. It would help to read some medical

journals so we'd have an understanding of how things work. But we need to take

care of ourselves because each one of us is sorely needed in this country.

Some men choose not to go for check ups out of fear. How does one convince them

to go to the doctor?

Tell him, " If there is fear, there is no faith. "

Tagged as: an officer and a gentleman, AnOfficerAndAGentleman, cancer, cancer

prevention, CancerPrevention, lakawanna blues, LakawannaBlues, louis gossett jr,

Louis Gossett Jr., LouisGossettJr, LouisGossettJr., prostate cancer,

ProstateCancer, toxic mold, ToxicMold

[Guest guest]

Wow-thanks for the post. I am a big fan and am happy to hear he's alright.

>

> Louis Gossett Jr. Bounces Back After Fight with Cancer & Deadly Toxic Mold

>

> By Lynette Holloway on Aug 11th 2010 3:00PM

>

> http://www.bvwellness.com/2010/08/11/louis-gossett-jr-fight-with-cancer/

>

> Filed under: Interviews, Men's Health, Disease Prevention, Cancer

>

> Anyone who has seen Louis Gossett Jr. on the big screen knows him to be a

strong character actor, from his award-winning role as the unflinching Marine

Gunnery Sergeant in 'An Officer And a Gentleman' to the example of a longtime

happily married man in 'Why Did I Get Married, Too.'

>

> So it is unfathomable to think that nearly two years ago, doctors told him he

had only six months to live. Gossett suffered from deadly toxic mold poisoning

from his home. Later, he discovered he had prostate and kidney cancer through

routine screening. The actor writes about triumphing over death in his newly

released life-affirming memoir, 'An Actor and A Gentleman.'

>

> " It was a downhill spiral,'' the 74-year-old California resident told Black

Voices Wellness in an interview. " I encourage every man over 45 to get annual

check ups and screenings for prostate cancer. If I hadn't, who knows what could

have happened. The only reason it was discovered was because of the screening.

That's why I encourage all black men to get regular screenings.''

>

> He is right.

>

> " Proportionately more African American men die of prostate cancer because they

are not screened early enough,'' Edmond , M.D. writes in 'Taking

Care of Our Own: A Black American's Guide to Family Medicine.''

>

> Overall, prostate cancer is the most commonly diagnosed disease in men and

second only to lung cancer as the leading cause of deaths in men, according to

the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). In 2005, 185,895 men were

diagnosed with prostate cancer and 28,905 men died from it, according to the

latest statistics available from the CDC. Symptoms include difficulty with

urinating; weak, or interrupted flow of urine and frequent urination, especially

at night.

>

> Gossett spoke with BV Wellness about surviving his illnesses and looking

toward the future.

>

> When did you discover you were ill?

>

> About two years ago while I started writing the book. There was toxic mold in

my home. My pets were dying and I didn't know why. They were affected first

because they were closest to the ground. Then I started to get sick from just

sitting on the couch and it prevented me from working. I stayed there long

enough for it to really get to me. I was sick but the doctors didn't know what

was wrong.

>

> The doctor said, " You really don't have long to live – about six months. "

Fortunately, I went to a Chinese doctor. He looked at me, ran some tests and

said, " You have mold and an infection in your system that I haven't seen in a

long time. " I started transfusions and massive antibiotics, which takes all of

your resistance away. Slowly and surely I started to come to life.

>

> Eventually, the six months I had to live passed by. Then I wound up with

cancer of the kidney. They took one kidney out. I kept on fighting and they

found cancer in the prostate. I got over that and slowly but surely I started to

come to life and today is the best day of my life.

>

> What happened to the house?

>

> I tore down the house and rebuilt it. I treated the wood, that way the mold

would not come back. The mold came from mildew beneath the wall-to-wall carpet

so I threw that out. There was a slow leak underneath the house over the last 15

years that caused the mold to develop. I had no idea because I was hardly home.

>

> You always look so strong and vibrant in front of the camera, how do you

manage that?

>

> It's what saved me, I guess. You saw the results of the mold illness when I

filmed 'Jasper', 'Texas' and 'Lackawanna Blues'. I was getting old real quick.

The uphill is when you see me in 'Why Did I get Married, Too.' Other than that,

I was able to mask it.

>

> So the mold was attacking you for a long period of time?

>

> Yes, I just didn't know it.

>

> Did you ever feel the effects of prostate cancer?

>

> It was discovered early enough through routine testing for me to get rid of

it. I'm 74; I have to keep an eye on things on a daily basis. As we get over 45

and 50, we have to get physicals twice a year. It would help to read some

medical journals so we'd have an understanding of how things work. But we need

to take care of ourselves because each one of us is sorely needed in this

country.

>

> Some men choose not to go for check ups out of fear. How does one convince

them to go to the doctor?

>

> Tell him, " If there is fear, there is no faith. "

> Tagged as: an officer and a gentleman, AnOfficerAndAGentleman, cancer, cancer

prevention, CancerPrevention, lakawanna blues, LakawannaBlues, louis gossett jr,

Louis Gossett Jr., LouisGossettJr, LouisGossettJr., prostate cancer,

ProstateCancer, toxic mold, ToxicMold

>