--- title: "Far Too Many Americans Googled “What Is a Prostate” Following Joe Biden’s Cancer Diagnosis" description: "Following news of former president Joe Biden's prostate cancer diagnosis, a lot of Americans took to Google to find out what a prostate was." date: "2025-05-20" modified: "2025-05-20" authors: - name: "Maggie Harrison Dupré" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/mharrison" url: "https://futurism.com/neoscope/americans-googled-prostate-biden-cancer" categories: - "Artificial Intelligence" - "Cancer" - "Google" - "Health & Medicine" - "Medical" tags: - "cancer" - "health" - "joe biden" - "prostate cancer" --- # Far Too Many Americans Googled “What Is a Prostate” Following Joe Biden’s Cancer Diagnosis ![Following news of former president Joe Biden's prostate cancer diagnosis, a lot of Americans took to Google to find out what a prostate was.]() *\Image: Getty / Futurism\* On Sunday, [*The New York Times* reported]() that former president Joe Biden, 82, was diagnosed with an aggressive form of prostate cancer. What, exactly, does that mean? A bunch of Americans have apparently been trying to figure that out. Google search queries for the phrase "what is a prostate" drastically [spiked]() following news about the former president's cancer diagnosis, as [flagged on Bluesky]() by *The Onion* writer June Sternbach. The trend suggests that the sad news about America's 46th president didn't just spark inquiry over prostate *cancer* and what it means, but that a surprising number of US citizens are unclear on what a prostate even is, which may unfortunately be a glaring indictment of American health education. ![]() Because many citizens are clearly looking for some answers, we shall provide them. The prostate, [according to the National Institutes of Health](), is a "gland about the size of a chestnut" that sits below men's bladders and above their pelvic floors. It's a component of the male reproductive system, and a key function includes providing an essential fluid used by the male body to create sperm. Doctors recommend that men, especially as they age, get regular prostate exams. As men get older, most will experience prostate enlargement, which may cause some irritation to the bladder. Prostate cancer, meanwhile, is the leading cancer for men, [according to the American Cancer Society](), and is most common in patients over the age of 65. As [*NPR* noted this week](), prostate cancer can be effectively treated, and has a five-year relative survival rate of about 97 percent. Those odds go down, however, if the cancer spreads to other parts of the body, as Biden's has. His cancer has progressed to Stage 4 and has metastasized to the bone. The former president "has a very bad version" of prostate cancer, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine urologist Ben Davis told *NPR*, "probably the worst version you can get." Still, Davies added, advancements in treatment mean that "it's not all doom and gloom, to be honest." "He can easily live ten years with this disease," the urologist continued. Biden's team has said that the former president's cancer "appears to be hormone-sensitive," which may make it more manageable, per the *NYT.* It's an unfortunate situation for Biden — whose son, Beau Biden, [died in 2015]() of brain cancer at the age of just 46 — and his family. So, maybe, now that we all know what a prostate is, if you have one: please consider getting it regularly checked out, and all of us should tell our loved ones to consider doing the same. **More on the male reproductive system:** *[Microplastics Found in Human Penises]()* ## Author At Futurism, I've reported extensively on the rise of AI as a cultural and business force shaping the media industry, and more broadly how those dynamics are changing how we all consume and share information and relate to one another. I'm also fascinated by public health policy and ethics, the role of emerging tech in politics and governance — and the powerful people and forces at those intersections — climate change, and the environment. My investigation on Sports Illustrated's use of AI-generated authors with fictional biographies won a 2024 Mirror Award for "Best Story on Media Coverage of Artificial Intelligence in Journalism and the Media" from Syracuse University's SI Newhouse School, I contributed to Niemen Lab's 2025 Predictions for Journalism series, and I've discussed my work for Futurism during appearances on NPR, CNN, the BBC, the CBC, and more. I grew up in rural Pennsylvania and attended the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where I played Division I field hockey for the Minutewomen as a midfielder. Since then, I've lived in New Orleans, Louisiana and Manhattan, New York. I spend my free time running, reading, perusing archival fashion, and searching for the world’s best negroni. I also have a debonair tuxedo cat, Westley, who's named after "The Princess Bride." ### Author social links [Bluesky]()