Montell Jordan, the son of the South Los Angeles man who rose to fame with the 1995 hit “That's How We Do It,” says his prostate cancer has returned despite a radical prostatectomy last year.
“We thought [the cancer] everyone was confined, isolated from the prostate,” he said on Wednesday.Today” – Apparently, this was not the case.
Jordan said that after nine months of follow-up examinations and tests, doctors noticed a “small number” of cancer cells in the prostate bed – the former site of the removed gland – and in some lymph nodes on the left side of his body. He chooses proton beam therapy to target the cancer and hormone blockers to reduce or eliminate the production of testosterone, a hormone that Mayo Clinic says it is essential for the growth of most prostate cancer cells.
Radiation therapy five days a week would be “life-ending for 7.5 weeks to ensure that I live longer,” said the 56-year-old Pepperdine University graduate, who is now a pastor in Georgia and also continues to work in the music industry.
After he turned 40, he had regular prostate exams and knew his doctor suspected he had cancer when his PSA test results came back elevated. Still, he said, receiving an official diagnosis in early 2024 was a shock.
“I’m still a little numb,” Jordan told “Today.” “I'm one of those people who tries to live in moderation in what I eat, what I drink and how I exercise. I don't drink alcohol or smoke or anything like that.” He noted that his quality of life after the operation was “fantastic.”
However, a biopsy obtained after the prostatectomy showed he likely had stage 2 cancer, not stage 1 as originally thought, he said. Stage 2 means the cancer has grown and may have spread to nearby lymph nodes. The latest examination seems to have confirmed this diagnosis.
Jordan said he talks about his journey because the intertwining of prostate cancer and ideas about masculinity and masculinity means men don't like to talk about the disease. Especially black men.
The priest, who with his wife Christine Jordan formed the “100% virtual” Main Church of the World based in Dacula, Georgia, northeast of Atlanta, is also making a documentary about his experience.
“I try to give people who are diagnosed with this a template so they know they have options,” Jordan said. “And secondly, despite what it looks like, it's okay to cry. It's okay to shake your fist at God. It's okay to navigate and do what you need to do, but doing nothing is not an option.”
