New Balls Please
Here at Fine Fettle we have a
broad range of people using our services – young, old, sporty, the less active,
men and women. This means, particularly
for our manual therapy professionals, we need to have an awareness of some of
the health issues facing particular groups of patients and it is one of the
reasons why we take such a thorough case history when you first come to see us
– we need to make sure (as much as we can) that we are dealing with a condition
which is treatable using manual therapy and there is not some underlying
condition which is causing your symptoms.
Some groups are better than
others at doing various health checks – sorry guys it does tend to be the
ladies who are more aware of what they should be doing on a regular basis. Quite a few of the health issues avoided tend
to have an element of embarrassment which also contributes to certain groups
being less health aware about conditions that can affect them. In particular teenage boys and young men can
be unaware of what they should be doing.
So here goes ....
Testicular Cancer ... is a
young man’s disease, and yet this age group can have the greatest sense of
invincibility from illness. It affects
around 2,000 men a year in the UK
and is the most common form of cancer in men aged between 15-44 years old. For some reason (as of yet unknown) the
incidence of testicular cancer has more than doubled since 1975. Other factors which can increase the chances
are: a significant risk is an
undescended testis at birth; inherited genetic factors can be significant –
having a father, brother or son who has had testicular cancer can increase the
risk of getting the disease.
The common symptoms are: a lump can be felt in 97% of cases and
approximately 86% of these will be painless; an enlargement of the testicle; a
feeling of heaviness in the scrotum; a dull ache in the abdomen or groin. If you do have any of these symptoms, don’t
just wait and hope that they disappear - go and get checked out by your doctor.
Most lumps are not cancerous but the earlier you find out, the earlier you can
get any necessary treatment.
Regular self-examination will
help you become more aware of the normal feel and size of your testicles so
that any abnormalities can be spotted early on.
It only takes a few minutes to perform and is best performed monthly
after you have had a bath or shower when your scrotum will be warm and relaxed. Support the scrotum in the palm of your hand
and become familiar with the size and weight of each testicle. Examine each
testicle by rolling it between your fingers and thumb. Gently feel for lumps,
swellings, or changes in firmness. Each
testicle has an epididymis that runs behind it which carries sperm to the penis
and can often be mistaken for an abnormal lump.
Don’t panic if you feel this – it’s normal.
Fine Fettle will have some
leaflets from Orchid the male cancer charity, available from the end of July –
pop in and pick one up for yourself or if not for you, for somebody you care
about.
98% of testicular cancer cases can be treated if caught
earlier enough. So come on boys 'check yourself out'!
Author Rachel Lambert - Osteopath Fine Fettle Multi-healthcare
My partner had testicular cancer at the age of 24 and is proof that there are cases where the disease can be stopped and eradicated when found early. He had is 50th birthday this year. He has a fantastic scar across his abdomen (after removal of lymph nodes in his abdomen) which he now tells people is a shark bite!! - Helen Bullen (owner and Osteopath at Fine Fettle)
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