Tuesday, April 21, 1998 | 12:38 p.m.
SPECIAL TO THE SUN
Less than a year after Arnold Palmer and Jim Colbert were diagnosed with prostate cancer, the two star golfers have joined forces with the Senior PGA Tour and CaP CURE in a unique program to raise funds for research to find a cure.
The two golfers are spearheading the Senior PGA Tour for the Cure to stop a disease that will strike an estimated 187,000 American men in 1998. Fans of the Senior PGA Tour are encouraged to make pledges for each birdie their favorite players make in 1998, with all funds going to research supported by CaP CURE, the Association for the Cure of Cancer of the Prostate.
"The Senior PGA Tour for the CURE has the chance to be a fantastic program," Palmer said. "Anytime we can all get together to raise money for any type of cancer research and encourage more people to become aware of cancer, it has to help.
"We'd like to make sure they have a regular checkup. I believe with CaP CURE's support, this program will work, and work well."
Prostate cancer is the most frequently diagnosed cancer in America, with a new case diagnosed every three minutes. Colbert said he hopes the Senior PGA Tour for the Cure will focus public attention on the desperate need for research funds.
"Before I got prostate cancer, I wasn't aware that it's the most common cancer in men -- I had no idea," Colbert said. "Women have been publicizing breast cancer for a while, but men have just not been willing to talk about prostate cancer."
The program officially was launched in January at a gala CaP CURE dinner at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York. Palmer, Colbert and PGA Tour commissioner Tim Finchem, on behalf of the Senior PGA Tour and its players, were honored at the event.
It is especially important that fans of the Senior PGA Tour are aware of the disease, Colbert said. There are about five million male golfers over the age of 50 in America, each of whom has a 42 percent lifetime risk for prostate cancer. But while the disease poses a real threat -- especially to men over 50 -- the disease has not bee the focus of significant attention or funding.
The Senior PGA Tour for the Cure has the potential to make a dramatic difference. Every dollar raised by the Senior PGA Tour during the year will be matched by CaP CURE, the largest private source of prostate cancer research funding in the world.
In the past five years, CaP CURE has awarded more than $50 million to more than 350 research projects. Every dollar CaP CURE raises goes directly to research -- not to overhead or other administrative expenses.
Palmer revealed in January of 1997 that he had been diagnosed with prostate cancer and shortly thereafter underwent surgery. Palmer, who was playing golf less than six weeks after his surgery, said, "I've tried to help other people understand cancer and how to battle it. Since I came back out on the tour, I've been getting lots of mail from people thanking me for telling them to get a PSA. That has been gratifying for me."
Colbert was diagnosed with prostate cancer during a routine physical in June, 1997. Colbert underwent a radical prostatectomy and returned to the Senior Tour last October. Colbert said his decision to publicly discuss his experience with the disease was made easier by the example set by Palmer.
To obtain a Senior PGA Tour for the Cure pledge card, call CaP CURE at 1-800-757-2873. Pledge cards also will be available on pgatour.com. Participants can keep track of the birdies their players make through the website's Stats and Records area.
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