"That's been happening for years," the real estate agent from regional Victoria told AAP, with a laugh.
The results in September 2025 instead showed an elevated level of prostate-specific antigen, which can be a marker for prostate cancer.
The 53-year-old had made sure testing was part of his annual check-up in recent years, as his father and uncle had been diagnosed with the disease.
After that first elevated reading, further scans and a biopsy firmed up a cancer diagnosis by November.
As a man living outside a major city, Mr Cruickshanks had a statistically higher chance of advanced disease and that played on his mind amid delays in the regional hospital system.
He was assessed by Bendigo Health as a semi-urgent case to be operated on within 90 days but the wait quickly turned into weeks and months.
Public hospital waiting times for all kinds of surgeries are a national concern, while local demand for urology services has increased in the Bendigo region.
Demand can not always be met in the regions, which attract fewer specialists than major cities.
A Bendigo Health spokesperson said it recognised waiting for surgery can be stressful for patients and their families and it was working to improve access to care.
"Our focus remains on reducing wait times and ensuring patients receive timely, high-quality treatment closer to home," the spokesperson said.
Mr Cruickshanks developed cancer symptoms after two months and his mental health deteriorated as he feared the disease was spreading.
"Cancer doesn't wait," he said.
When he was told there were still no appointments available after 70 days, Mr Cruickshanks and his wife Bonny looked for private treatment instead.
They used trauma insurance to pay more than $20,000 for surgery in the private system in May, by which time the cancer had spread into the nerves surrounding the prostate.
The median waiting time for rural prostatectomy patients was 60 days or more in 2024-25, compared to 50 days in the cities, according to Australian Institute of Health and Welfare data.
Regional men are 24 per cent more likely to die of the disease, due to geography, along with lower healthcare access and awareness, Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia chief executive Anne Savage said.
"We cannot expect men to ask their GP about a PSA test for prostate cancer if they've never been warned that it could take their life," Ms Savage told AAP.
"We've leaned too heavily on minimising it ... saying things like 'men will die with it, not from it', when that's simply not the case."
The organisation has teamed up with the Profield Foundation on a five-year plan to improve outcomes for rural men.
The project will deliver community awareness campaigns in regional areas, strengthen telehealth connectivity, improve access to psychologists and connect survivors.
It will also expand its prostate cancer specialist nursing services to high-needs communities.
Mr Cruickshanks was grateful to have the surgery before the cancer spread any further and is confident he'll return to good health.
"Now, I don't stress the small things. The difficult conversations at work, well, they aren't cancer," he said.
His message for other men: "Get checked".
9°C