Skunk Anansie’s Mark Richardson shares cancer diagnosis
Posted On
(Credits: Русский: Дмитрий Рузов)
Skunk Anansie drummer Mark Richardson has revealed he has been diagnosed with prostate cancer and urged his followers to get themselves tested.
Richardson has been a member of the group since 1995 and has contributed to every Skunk Anansie record apart from their debut offering, Paranoid & Sunburnt. Notably, they headlined the Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury Festival in 1999.
In a new video shared on Instagram, Richardson revealed he received news of his diagnosis in February, telling his fans, “The reason I’m telling you this is because it’s the biggest cancer in men in the UK, there are about 150 new cases in the UK every day.”
The drummer continued: “It’s so easy to catch it early if you go for a check-up at your doctor’s, or you can get PSA (Prostate-Specific Antigen) ‘pee sticks’ online. It’s very easy to get an early diagnosis, and that’s what’s gonna save your life.”
Richardson had only gone to the doctor for a hearing test, which is standard procedure for professional musicians, and also carried out a blood test while seeking treatment. His high PSA rate was alarming, which led to the diagnosis.
The drummer said of the importance of having regular blood tests: “If you have a test regularly, you’re gonna catch that higher number as soon as it increases, which means it increases your chances of surviving this thing”
Despite his diagnosis, Richardson is optimistic, adding, “It’s probably the most treatable and survivable of the cancers, if you want to talk about it in those terms, but only if you catch it early, so that’s my message.”
Richards concluded: “Please get checked out, get regularly checked out… pee sticks, blood tests, whatever, but get checked out. The way you survive this thing is by early diagnosis.”
Earlier this year, his bandmate, Cass Lewis, revealed he had been diagnosed with stage four cancer while they were recording their recent album, The Painful Truth. Thankfully, the bassist has since been given the all-clear.
Related Topics
