Save the Homies is working to turn prostate cancer awareness, community stories, local data, and lived experience into action that improves outreach, strengthens systems, and saves lives.
Save the Homies is a community-powered prostate cancer awareness initiative focused on helping men and families take action earlier.
Our goal is simple: help more men know their risk, start the conversation earlier, access trusted information, and get connected to care before prostate cancer becomes advanced.
Awareness matters. But awareness alone is not enough.
We are working to turn community stories, local data, and lived experience into action that can improve systems, strengthen outreach, and save lives.
Prostate cancer is one of the most common cancers affecting men.
Some men and families carry a higher burden. They may face increased risk, later diagnosis, limited access to care, lack of trusted information, or delays in follow-up after a concern is found.
In Iowa, this issue deserves focused attention. A general cancer message is not enough. We need a strategy that reaches men earlier, meets families where they are, and makes it easier to move from awareness to action.
We want Iowa to become a state where men at higher risk have earlier conversations, better access, and clearer pathways to prostate cancer screening, diagnosis, treatment, and survivorship support.
That starts with one message:
If you are a man age 40 or older, talk with a trusted health care provider about your prostate cancer risk, family history, and whether PSA testing is right for you.
Save the Homies uses age 40 as a call to action because too many men do not know their risk early enough.
We are not saying every man needs the same test at the same time. We are saying every man deserves the chance to have the conversation early, with trusted information and support.
We are advocating for an official Save the Homies Day in Iowa during Prostate Cancer Awareness Month. This day would bring statewide attention to prostate cancer awareness, early conversations, family health history, and the importance of taking action before symptoms appear.
Our request: Recognize Save the Homies Day — Prostate Cancer Awareness Day in Iowa.
We want health systems, clinics, community organizations, churches, barbershops, workplaces, and families to normalize prostate cancer conversations for men age 40 and older — especially men with personal or family risk factors.
This includes conversations about family history, PSA testing, risk factors, symptoms and warning signs, insurance and cost, follow-up care, treatment options, survivorship, and emotional and family support.
The first step is not fear. The first step is a conversation.
A PSA test is a blood test that may help detect prostate cancer early. But access is not always simple. Some men face cost barriers. Some do not have a regular doctor. Some are unsure who to ask. Some never receive a clear recommendation. Some get tested but do not receive timely follow-up.
We are advocating for easier access to PSA testing, patient navigation, and follow-up support for men who need it.
Men need more than brochures. They need trusted messengers. They need information in places where they already gather. They need real stories from men who have been screened, diagnosed, treated, and supported.
We support funding for community-led prostate cancer outreach through churches, barbershops, fraternities, community events, podcasts, local nonprofits, family-centered education, workplace wellness efforts, and culturally responsive health campaigns.
When trusted people carry trusted information, men are more likely to listen, ask questions, and take action.
Data helps show where the need is greatest. Stories help explain what the numbers cannot. Save the Homies collects community stories, resource needs, and outreach data to help partners better understand what men and families are experiencing across Iowa.
We want better use of data to answer questions like:
Policy should be shaped by both numbers and lived experience.
Save the Homies Day would honor men who have faced prostate cancer. It would support families carrying the weight of diagnosis, treatment, and loss.
It would encourage men age 40 and older to start the conversation.
It would bring together community organizations, health systems, policymakers, and families around one shared goal:
Help more men find prostate cancer early, when it is easier to treat.
We are asking Iowa leaders to support a focused prostate cancer awareness and early detection strategy for men and families who face higher risk or greater barriers to care.
This is not about politics. This is about fathers, brothers, sons, uncles, husbands, friends, and neighbors.
We are asking health systems and clinics to work with community partners to make prostate cancer conversations easier and more trusted.
A man should not have to know the whole system to get help. The system should be easier to enter.
We are asking churches, barbershops, fraternities, nonprofits, businesses, workplaces, and local leaders to help us spread the message.
This work moves faster when the community leads.
You do not have to wait for symptoms. You do not have to have all the answers. You do not have to go through it alone.
If you are 40 or older, start the conversation with a trusted health care provider. Ask:
Your health matters. Your story matters. Your life matters.
We want Iowa to become a place where:
Save the Homies Day is one step. The larger goal is lasting change.
Save the Homies is building a statewide movement for prostate cancer awareness, early detection, and community action.
We welcome partners who want to support:
Together, we can make prostate cancer awareness more trusted, more visible, and more actionable for men and families across Iowa.
Eligible men can request a free at-home PSA kit in a few minutes.
Get a Free PSA Kit →Add your voice to the community data that shapes this work.
Take The Checkpoint →Stay connected as we organize for Save the Homies Day and beyond.
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