‘Real Housewife Of New Jersey’ Husband, 70, Anxiously Awaits Test Results to Learn If He Has Prostate Cancer Despite ‘No Symptoms’

Supporting a Spouse Battling Cancer

• “Real Housewives of New Jersey” stars Joe Benigno and Margaret Josephs are anxiously awaiting test results to learn if Benigno will be diagnosed with prostate cancer after his bloodwork detected his prostate-specific antigen (PSA) elevated, which could signal cancer.
• Prostate cancer screening may often involve a digital rectal exam and prostate-specific antigen test. This test measures the level of PSA in the blood, and higher levels can indicate cancer. Most cancer diagnoses are caught with screening.
• Cancer caregivers can be a spouse, family member, or close friend. Often, spouses or partners assume caregiving roles for their loved ones diagnosed with cancer.
• Cancer caregivers often attend patient appointments, take notes on treatment options, and prescribe medication directions. They also help with everyday tasks, which may include cooking and helping with the kids during treatment.

“Real Housewives of New Jersey” stars Joe Benigno, 70, and his Margaret Josephs, 57, are anxiously awaiting test results after Benigno exhibited signs of prostate cancer. His last screening found elevated levels of prostate-specific antigen (PSA), which can signal prostate cancer. “He definitely could have cancer,” Josephs said to her cohort of Housewives stars on the latest episode of the reality TV show.

“The first blood work, not good,” Josephs said. She added that despite the possibility of cancer, Benigno hasn’t presented any symptoms. While the episodes were taped in advance, the couple remains tight-lipped in real-time. On the show, they anxiously await MRI results, which will confirm if Benigno and his wife have a cancer journey awaiting them. In many cases, when a person is diagnosed with cancer, their partner or spouse often joins them for the journey. The diagnosis often impacts their relationship, especially if the non-diagnosed man or woman assumes a caregiving role.

Expert Resources to Aid Caregivers

• ‘A Sacred and Blessed Calling’ – Managing Life As a Caregiver
• SurvivorNetTV Presents: Care to Laugh — A Comedian & Cancer Caregiver’s Quest To Make People Smile
• “Be Proud Of What You’re Doing” — Justine Almada’s Ode to Cancer Caregivers
• The First Steps to Take as a Caregiver When a Loved One is Diagnosed With Cancer

Caring For Your Spouse Facing a Diagnosis

While it’s too soon to know if Benigno and Josephs will face a cancer journey together, for many couples, after a diagnosis, they embark on the journey together. The person not diagnosed, more often than not, assumes caregiving roles. A caregiver may be a spouse or partner, a child, a parent, or a close friend. This special person bears a unique set of responsibilities that help make the patient’s cancer journey easier.

Cancer caregivers may:

• Attend doctor visits with the patient
• Help the patient take notes/ask questions
• Provide transportation to and from treatment
• Accompany the patient during treatment
• Help keep track of side effects
• Link up with a social worker/patient navigator
• Help with day-to-day activities
• Provide emotional support

It may come as no surprise that caregivers for cancer patients can be a daunting and exhausting task. Some days will be easier than others, and on those tough days, caregivers must remember they need care, too. It’s not uncommon for caregivers to overlook their own needs and emotional health. SurvivorNet experts stress that caregivers are more effective if they remember to care for themselves. WATCH: How Caregivers Must Take Care of Themselves Too “It is important to have some things that you can do that are kind of outside of the focus of caring for somebody that you love with cancer,” Julie Bulger , manager of patient and family-centered care at Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center in Nashville, told SurvivorNet. Bulger suggested that caregivers find activities that help them relax, like taking a walk or getting a massage.

Why Benigno’s Possibly Facing Prostate Cancer?

During a July episode of “The Real Housewives of New Jersey,” Benigno’s bloodwork detected elevated prostate-specific antigen levels . When men are screened for prostate cancer, a few tests may be utilized. One of the tests is the PSA test, a simple blood test. It looks for larger amounts of protein-specific antigen (PSA) in the blood. Normal PSA levels typically range from 0 to 4 ng/mL, although this can vary slightly based on age and other health factors. An elevated PSA test does not always mean you have prostate cancer, but the risk of getting it is greater. It could also reflect that your prostate is enlarged, which is common, or it could signal an infection or inflammation. Your doctor may also conduct a digital rectal exam (DRE) to check your prostate for lumps. “So for a patient that’s found to have an elevated PSA, oftentimes it’s the urologist that meets that patient first, typically referred from a primary care physician,” Dr. Jonathan Lischalk , radiation oncologist at Perlmutter Cancer Center, explains. Depending on the results of these tests, imaging scans and a biopsy may be ordered. WATCH: How Gleason Grade Determines Treatment After tests, your doctor analyzes the results to give you a Gleason Score . This score ranges from 6 to 10. The higher the score, the more aggressive the cancer. This score and your other test results help doctors determine whether your cancer is low, intermediate, or high risk. During the episode, Benigno’s doctor said, “There’s a chance that it’s prostate cancer.” Benigno will undergo additional testing to learn for sure if he has a cancer diagnosis ahead of him. Like many television storylines, Benigno’s cancer scare has been milked for several weeks to make for more compelling television. However, a definitive diagnosis is expected soon.

If You’re Diagnosed With Prostate Cancer, What to Expect for Treatment?

After testing and establishing your risk, your doctor will discuss possible treatment options. Treatment may include “active surveillance,” usually for men with low-risk prostate cancer, which again involves regular testing every six months to monitor the prostate and check for any progression of the disease. More aggressive treatment options include surgery and radiation therapy. Surgery is an option for men with any risk group of prostate cancer that hasn’t spread outside of the prostate gland. The type of surgery most often used is called a radical prostatectomy. During the procedure, the surgeon removes the entire prostate, along with some tissue around it, including the seminal vesicles that release fluid into the semen. Your doctor can perform this through a traditional open procedure with one large or several small incisions called laparoscopic surgery. WATCH: Sexual Function Recovery After Prostate Cancer Surgery Surgery side effects may include erectile dysfunction and urinary incontinence. Fortunately, the side effects are usually temporary, and there are ways to help you manage them. “Erectile function is so sensitive when we’re dealing with prostate cancer because the nerves that are critical for this function wrap around the prostate; they’re just so intimately connected to the prostate that they can be damaged from a surgical removal of the prostate or through radiation treatment,” Dr. Isla Garraway , a staff urologist in the Veterans Administration (VA) Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System, told SurvivorNet. Doctors often recommend sexual counseling after prostate cancer treatment to help improve sexual function. This approach actively addresses the psychological, emotional, and relationship impacts on sexual health. Radiation therapy is often done when prostate cancer is caught early and confined to the prostate gland.

Questions to Ask Your Doctor

If you have experienced symptoms associated with prostate cancer or have a screening coming up, here are some questions you may ask your doctor:

• If I have elevated PSA levels, what could be causing that besides cancer?
• How long will it take to learn if my PSA levels warrant further testing?
• What are the treatment options that are best suited for me based on my risk level?
• What financial resources exist to help me with the costs associated with treatment?
• How long will my potential treatment prevent me from working or continuing normal activities?