James Pickens Jr. opens up about his prostate cancer diagnosis

James Pickens Jr. opened up about his real-life cancer diagnosis, just days after his Grey’s Anatomy character, Dr. Richard Webber, was revealed to have cancer during season 22’s midseason finale.

In a candid interview with Black Health Matters, the 73-year-old actor shared that he is the latest in his family to face prostate cancer.

"It’s not the kind of news anyone wants to hear, but to be honest, prostate cancer has run through my family. My father had it. He had a lot of brothers; several of them had it. I would have been surprised if I hadn’t gotten it," Pickens said.

He added, "I’ve got a 90-year-old first cousin, who’s still alive, actually; he had it. His son has it. A couple of his brothers had it. No one, as far as I know, has succumbed to it."

Thanks to his family history, Pickens has been careful about his health and getting annual physicals and PSA testing from age 41.

"My urologist said, ‘Because you were so diligent in that piece of your health, it was to your advantage. We were able to catch it so early because you were being tested,'" he explained. 

The Private Practice actor further shared that elevated PSA levels in January led to an MRI, a biopsy, and a PET scan, which confirmed that the tumour had not spread beyond his prostate.

Pickens underwent a robotic radical prostatectomy performed by two urologists.

"We caught it really early, and so they thought that would be the best route to take… I do have a rare variant that you don’t see very often. They wanted to err on the side of caution and keep an eye on it," he said.

The Station 19 star hopes sharing his story will help remove the stigma around men discussing health issues.

"Today, I am living proof that early detection works. If you're Black, or prostate cancer runs in your family, talk to your doctor about getting screened starting at age 40," James Pickens Jr. concluded.