Ivona Rose, Coast Community News

On Monday, March 16, Terrigal prostate cancer advocate Steve Keil took to the saddle with his daughter, Courtney Keil, for a five-day fundraising and awareness horse ride, tracing the trail of The Man From Snowy River across Victoria’s high country.

The ride was originally planned for March 2025, but had to be postponed after Mr Keil, then 63, was diagnosed with prostate cancer in mid-2024.

“Everything was booked and paid for,” he said.

“We had to delay it because I had to go in for a procedure following my prostate cancer diagnosis.”

Mr Keil said he feels extremely fortunate that his partial prostatectomy went well, and he had no complications from the surgery.

His decision to become an ambassador for the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia came from seeing his own father pass from the disease, and a friendship with Jim Lloyd, who is also a senior ambassador.

“When I was first diagnosed, the foundation provided so much helpful information, including being paired up with a registered prostate nurse and other patients in a similar situation,” he said.

Mr Keil says family history can significantly increase a person’s risk of developing the disease and is something many people may not realise.

“My cancer was first detected during a routine health check when a blood test showed elevated PSA levels,” he said.

After learning his father had also experienced prostate cancer, doctors explained the risk can be higher when it runs in families, and now he encourages others with a family history to speak with their doctor and consider regular testing, stressing that early detection can make a critical difference.

Based on the Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia data, 3,975 Australian men will die from prostate cancer in 2026.

Between 1982 and 2021, five-year relative survival for prostate cancer improved from 58 per cent to 96 per cent.

Ms Keil, a local country music singer-songwriter, put pen to paper with her father and honoured her late grandfather, Glen, in a song called Just Like Flying, which tells the story of his early life in the 50s in the Barossa Valley.

“As women, we’re often more comfortable talking about health,” she said.

“We can help encourage the men in our lives to have those conversations and book the test.”

Mr Keil said he and his daughter have been involved in fundraising over the years, participating in events such as a 90 CC bike ride from Melbourne to the Gold Coast and the Kokoda trail.

Fundraising and advocacy associated with this ride hold special significance as he said his grandparents kept horses, he loved horses when he was young, and Ms Keil grew up around horses.

“She loves them, and I did in my early years, and it’s a ride we always wanted to do,” he said.

To donate to the Man from Snowy River Prostate Cancer Foundation Australia fundraiser, go to: https://fundraise.pcfa.org.au/fundraisers/stephenkeil