Men's Health Awareness Month

Mental health and suicide

Studies suggest that over two in five 43% of men has experienced a mental health problem at some point. According to national statistics suicide in UK 2020, around 74% of all suicides were males and with the highest rates between ages of 40-49 this makes it the largest cause of death among men.

According to the Government national well-being survey men report lower levels of life satisfaction than women and are less likely to access phycological therapies than women.

There are lots of symptoms of depression and poor mental health such as, feeling of sadness and hopelessness, anxiety, stress, withdrawn and feeling tired all the time.

However, some symptoms are more likely to be experienced by men than women, such as: agitation and anger, reckless behaviour, substance abuse, becoming controlling or abusive in relationship working obsessively, having difficulty sleeping, headache or abdominal aches.

Causes of mental health can vary in men and women, but some of the most common in both genders are, abuse, difficult life events such as losing a job, divorce or bereavement or physical health. Having a strong support network, keeping social and talking about the difficult life events is vital in coping with stress and managing your mental health.

Society's expectations and traditional gender roles play expected men to be strong, dominant and in control that is why men are less likely to open up and discuss or seek help for their mental health problems.

Get support: If you're ever worried that someone's life is in immediate danger, call 999 or go directly to emergency services.

1. NHS 111: https://111.nhs.uk
2. Shout Crisis text line text: 85258 https://giveusashout.org
3. The Samaritans free call 116 123 https://www.samaritans.org

Prostate Cancer

Prostate cancer is the cancer of the prostate gland which is part of the male reproductive system. Prostate glands are located at the base of the bladder and is about the size of a walnut. Prostate cancer is It is the most common cancer in men in the UK. 1 in 8 men in the UK will be diagnosed with prostate cancer within their lifetime. Survival rate for prostate cancer is generally good, particularly if you are diagnosed early. However late diagnoses can result in cancer to spread to other parts of body and decrease survival rate to 50% in comparison to 95% if diagnosed early.

prostate cancer progresses very slowly and does not usually cause symptoms in the early stages until the cancer has grown large enough to put pressure on the tube that carries urine from the bladder out of the penis.

The symptoms include:

1. Passing urine more often during the day or night
2. Felling that your bladder has not emptied fully
3. Difficulty passing urine
4. Weak flow
5. Straining or taking a long time while peeing
6. Blood in urine or blood in semen

However, these symptoms are not always sign of prostate cancer and can simply be caused by benign prostate enlargement (PBH)

The causes of prostate cancer are still unknown however studies have shown the risk of developing cancer increases in men if they are over the age of 50, they of black or Asian ethnic background, having brother of father being diagnosed with prostate cancer before age of 60, obesity and lack of exercise and having diet high in calcium linked to an increase risk of prostate cancer.

If you have any of the above symptoms and are worried about prostate cancer do not delay seeing your GP remember the earlier diagnoses have a higher chance of successful treatment.

Testicular cancer

Around 2300 men are diagnosed with Testicular cancer annually in UK. While it is relatively uncommon, testicular cancer is the most common type of cancer to affect men between the ages of 15 and 49.

Even though is rare type of cancer it raises concern as number of cases diagnosed each year has roughly double since 1970s for unknown reasons.

Symptoms include:

1. Painless swelling or lump in 1 of the testicles, the swelling or lump can be about the size of a pea, but may be larger.
2. Change in shape or texture of the testicles.
3. A feeling of heaviness in the scrotum.
4. A dull ache in the lower belly or groin.
5. Pain or discomfort in a testicle or the scrotum.
6. Enlargement or tenderness of the breast tissue.
7. Back pain.

Testicular cancer is one of the most treatable cancer, with survival rate of 99% when diagnosed early and it has not metastasis to other part of body.

See a GP as soon as possible if you notice a swelling, lump or any other change in 1 of your testicles.

You can contact the cancer support specialists at Macmillan for more information about Leydig cell tumour and Sertoli cell tumours.

The Macmillan helpline number is 0808 808 00 00, open Monday to Friday, 9am to 8pm.