Ian’s Story

Ian Petrie – West Group Buddy

Born 1951, I moved around the country with family because of my father’s employment. We eventually arrived in Newton Stewart in 1963, where I started my secondary education at Douglas Ewart High School.

I left school in 1968 and started work, qualifying as a Draughtsman at Solway Precast, Creetown.

It was here that I met my wife Christine, we married in 1973 and have two sons, Fraser and Alistair and also five grandchildren aged from fifteen to one.

Moving around the country was in the blood but we eventually moved back to Newton Stewart in 1992, where we started our own Agricultural Building Specialist business.

I had always been relatively fit and healthy but in 2003 I had a heart scare. Every year since then I have had to go for a medical MOT and it was at the one in 2015 that a blood sample was taken for PSA. I was pretty ignorant regarding PSA levels, but was soon on a steep learning curve !!

Results came back showing a PSA level around 7, rising every 3 months until eventually I went for biopsy, and yup, cancer was found !. I was then sent for an MRI scan and yup, it could be seen hiding in the corner. Now it was decision time.

Dr McLaren at the Western General Hospital in Edinburgh discussed the options on treatment with us, my son Alistair having driven us to hospital being present during the consultation. We got the CD recording of the consultation home with us, where Fraser was able to hear the discussions for himself. We all knew the situation and openly discussed it and I also told family and friends.

Once I had the diagnosis that I had cancer it was a traumatic time, as both my mother and sister had died of this terrible disease. I found that if I went for a game of golf just on my own, it was a help mentally to me. The golf was rubbish but I felt better.

I chose Brachytherapy because it suited me, it was a quick procedure and I could return to work very quickly. We were told about possible side effects, of which I had a few, but we knew how to deal with them. The procedure was performed on Remembrance Day 2016. My PSA reading the week before was 14 – now it is 0.1.

I have always spoken openly and discussed this disease and my particular history.

It should be every man’s mission to be checked out with the simple blood test which could save his life.