04 November 2025

WA’s new Support Group helping men get back to work after prostate cancer

When Perth educator and yoga teacher Andrew Gray was diagnosed with prostate cancer 14 months ago, his life changed.

After a period of watch and wait, the 57-year-old underwent robotic prostatectomy surgery in August last year.

Supported by his wife, a nurse, and able to take time off from his role at a local high school in Western Australia, he initially assumed he was managing recovery well.

Returning to work proved confronting.

“Incontinence hit me hard. It was a smack in the face,” he recalled.

“I thought I’d nailed recovery at home, then suddenly I was back on my feet all day, reacting to whatever the school needed. By the time I got home, I was exhausted.”

Heat, fatigue and the physical demands of teaching compounded his symptoms.

Despite being a yoga teacher and advocate for men’s health, recovery took longer than expected. 

Andrew realised many men don’t have the strong support network he relied upon; the mates who gather weekly at his place for table tennis, the colleagues who listen, the yoga group that doubles as an emotional refuge.

“There are blokes going through this alone,” he said. He decided to build something for them.

Launching in January, the Support Group for working men WA will focus on younger men returning to work after treatment.

The group will incorporate yoga, mindfulness, social activities such as pickleball and badminton, and practical guidance on pelvic floor recovery.

He hopes to reduce isolation, encourage early engagement with treatment pathways, and build resilience within local families and workplaces.

With business partners stepping in to help cover insurance costs and a website now underway, Andrew is determined to create a new kind of support: active, connected, and empowering.

“It’s about mateship, wellbeing and turning recovery into strength, because exercise is medicine.”

To reach out to Andy, please call 0431 698 872 or canningvalepcfa@gmail.com.