Testicular Cancer Awareness Month. Or not.

I’m interested that you are looking for it, though.

 

Testicular cancer is rather eye-catching, I agree. It is the 16th most common, i.e. it’s a rare, cancer, when they are ranked by incidence. The next five more likely to afflict men are cancer of the liver, multiple myeloma, cancer of the brain and central nervous system, then oral and pancreatic cancers. You might imagine these would get more public attention because they affect more men but no. Clearly not. Ever heard of their awareness months? No? I thought not.

 

The gender specific nature of testicles, simple recognition of the body part and the easy link to sex overrides its ‘real’ significance to men’s health. It’s also got some phenomenally successful treatment to tackle it and it is one of the few cancers to affect younger men disproportionately. So we can add in some random ageism to the mix on public awareness.

 

It’s a pity the awareness of testicular cancer can’t be harnessed and turned to modifying men’s awareness of other pressing cancer related knowledge. Any testicular cancer charity won't do that though, and they do the awareness months.

 

I made a point in a previous post that men (and women) were disadvantaged by the ability of women (and men) to get non gender-specific cancers. I was right then. I’m still right, now. Basically, if both genders can get it, it seems both genders have permission not to take any particular notice of it.

 

Weird. And obviously incorrect.

 

Once deaths in men from cancer are ranked testicular cancer is 27th on the list, with 70 deaths. Breast cancer killed 69 men the same year (2008). Bowel cancer killed more than 100 times more men – at 8,700. Lung cancer came close to killing 300 times more men - at 19,800.

 

Still think gender specific is the right way to assess the significance of particular cancers to men?