A COLCHESTER charity boss says he is “alarmed” by how few men check for testicular cancer, despite regularly playing with their balls – even at work.
The Robin Cancer Trust, founded by Toby Freeman after his brother Robin, 24, died from a rare form of testicular cancer, surveyed 1,000 men in the UK aged 18 to 35.
The aim of the germ cell organisation’s research was to discover how many men play with their balls and whether or not they are making life-saving checks whilst doing so.
The results show 45 per cent of men in Essex do not regularly check their testicles for signs of cancer, with only 20 per cent checking on a weekly basis.
On average, however, 30 per cent of men in the county – or 60 per cent across the country - admitted to playing with their balls at least once a day.
Nationally, the study also found two per cent of men touch their testicles at work.
In Essex, 52 per cent of men feel there isn’t enough information available about the symptoms, while 56 per cent do not actually know how to check for testicular cancer.
Toby said: “We are alarmed to see how many men aren’t checking themselves - testicular cancer is 98 per cent curable if detected early and mostly affects younger men.
“2,400 men are diagnosed with testicular cancer every year in the UK – that’s more than six per day, so it is vital we all know how to check and how often to check.”
Since launching the Robin Cancer Trust ten years ago, Toby and his team have dedicated themselves to raising awareness of testicular and ovarian cancers.
Through interesting and captivating campaigns, they have reached 12 million people online and engaged with more than 175,000 men and women in the community.
But they also want to shatter the stigma of talking about testicular cancer, something they hope to move closer to achieving with their forthcoming world record attempt.
On November 19 the “largest simultaneous self-check for testicular cancer” will take place at Sub Zero nightclub at the University of Essex on International Men’s Day.
Toby added: “At Robin Cancer Trust, we want to bring men together to raise awareness, reduce embarrassment and save lives.
“We [must] educate the younger generation that this is a cancer which can and does affect their age group.”
To find out more visit therobincancertrust.org.
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