LITTLE-KNOWN THINGS ONLY MEN SHOULD DO FOR THEIR HEALTH
Routine maintenance for the human body can help prevent many of life’s unpleasantries, and just as women have health concerns that should be addressed
in regular doctor visits, so do men. For men, those concerns include blood pressure, cholesterol levels, the health of their hearts, their activity levels, and as they reach middle-age and late-life years, specific tests to detect prostate cancer, colon/rectal cancer and heart disease.
In addition to an electrocardiogram or heart stress test, blood pressure monitoring, cholesterol blood test, immunization, and counseling and discussion, which all follow the same guidelines as women’s checkups described earlier in this chapter, men should also perform a monthly testicle self-examination for soreness, lumps and swelling. Starting at age 40, men should also have a digital rectal exam— a physical exam of the rectum and prostate to detect signs of cancer or prostate disease—every year.
Doctors recommend that men between the ages of 20 and 40 should perform a self-examination of their testicles about once a month to look for lumps or swellings that may indicate cancer. Self-examination (in addition to your doctor’s periodic examinations) is important because testicular cancer, which is the most common cancer in young men, is one of the most easily curable of all cancers if detected early. The best time to perform the examination is during or after a bath or shower when the scrotal skin is relaxed. Here’s what to look for:
1) A lump in either testicle.
2) Pain, swelling or tenderness of either testicle.
3) Ulceration of the scrotal skin.
Here are the steps involved in the self-examination procedure:
1) Standing in front of a mirror, look for obvious lumps or swelling of the scrotal sac.
2) Examine each testicle thoroughly and gently with the fingers of both hands by rolling the testicle between the thumbs and the fingers. Feel for any lump or abnormality in texture or contour. A normal testicle is oval and firm, but not hard, and has a regular surface.
3) Locate and identify the epididymis at the top and back of the testicles (the ropelike structure which collects the sperm). The structure may feel firm but should not be confused for an abnormal lump. Consult your doctor if it is tender or swollen.
Other danger signals to report immediately include a heavy feeling in the testicles, a dragging sensation in the groin, or a sudden accumulation of blood or fluid in the scrotal sac.
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