CHESAPEAKE, VA (WTKR)- Alonzo Mourning is speaking out in an effort to encourage men to pay closer attention to their health after his own battle and scare.
Mourning, an Indian River graduate, told ESPN that he is recovering from surgery after having his prostate removed in March. The Naismith Basketball Hall of Famer was diagnosed with Stage 3 prostate cancer, which additional testing showed did not spread and he's now cancer-free, according to the publication.
The former Brave told ESPN how routine screening played a significant role in his diagnosis and the ability to treat it. Prostate cancer kills one in 44 men, according to the American Cancer Society. Mourning has now set out to help at-risk men be more aware and pay better attention to their health, urging them to get regular screenings to detect and prevent the spread of the disease.
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"What scares me about this disease is that there are so many men walking around feeling great and have that cancer in them and they don't know it," Mourning told ESPN in the report. "The only way to find out is to get their blood tested and get their PSA checked. There are 3.3 million men living in the U.S. with prostate cancer, and many don't even know it. I was one of those guys."
During his time at Indian River, Mourning led the Braves to 51 straight wins and a state championship in 1987 as a junior. He averaged 25 points, 15 rebounds, and 12 blocks per game as a senior and was honored as National Player of the Year by USA Today, Gatorade, and Naismith.
After a successful college stint at Georgetown, Mourning was selected number two overall in the 1992 NBA Draft by the Charlotte Hornets. Most of his success came with the Miami Heat, winning a championship with them in 2006 and seeing his No. 33 retired by the organization. He was a seven-time NBA All-Star and won NBA Defensive Player of the Year twice.
