Know Thy Nuts
At greater than 95%, the odds of survival for men with testicular cancer are better than good and often why testicular cancer doesn’t gain the same attention as others. But for some men, treatment-related side effects mean quality of life can be severely comprised. At Movember, we focus on getting these predominately young men back to living full and healthy lives.
Of course, it’s one thing to hear about it in the abstract, but a completely different situation when you live the story firsthand, if that be yourself, a relly or a friend.
Dan Sharples, 25 of Christchurch, who had moved to the UK in 2018 and was embarking on a promising cricket career (competing for Old Rutlishaws in Wimbledon in the Surrey league) when he found a lump. What follows are Dan’s own words:
I was having a shower one afternoon after going for a run and felt a small lump. I didn’t think much of it at the time, but thought that if it got any worse then I’d see a GP.
It wasn’t until I woke one morning in pain, with a testicle that felt twice the normal size, that I dragged myself to an after-hours GP to get it looked at.
I hardly knew anything about testicular cancer before being diagnosed. I knew that if you found a lump, it could be cancer-related but I wasn’t sure about what being diagnosed meant and the processes that followed.
After receiving my diagnosis, I quickly realised that it didn’t only impact me, but also those around me. Having friends reach out and share their stories, with some even breaking down with emotion, was something that made me realise that my story was something that could relate and impact a lot of other men.
Following diagnosis, the first step was to undergo surgery to remove my testicle and the 4cm tumour. I then went and had a CT scan, which showed four further tumours in my abdomen. As a result, I was diagnosed with Stage 2 testicular cancer and I underwent three rounds of a BEP chemotherapy plan, with each round lasting three weeks. During the first week I would be to the hospital for up to five hours a day receiving the lovely cocktail of drugs. For weeks two and three, I’d go to the hospital for an hour every Monday, to receive a top up.
And then began the recovery process, where the biggest effect that chemotherapy had on me was my fitness and energy levels. I found myself needing afternoon naps to get through the day and would often feel breathless after light exercise. Getting my fitness back took longer than I expected, but understanding the chemo process and what my body was actually going through made me appreciate the recovery process.
My family and friends played a massive role in the process. It’s not just the patient going through the diagnosis and treatment but everyone around you. I quickly realised that they were worried, stressed and emotional about the whole thing, but that they were trying to put on a brave face to make me feel calm. They played a massive role in keeping me positive and lifting me up on my ‘down days’ where I felt like sh*t. But in turn, I felt that by being positive and happy as much as I could, that I was able to lift them when they were down and help them with what they were going through.
Upon returning to Christchurch, it was huge for me to be able to continue playing cricket for my club, St Albans, throughout the chemo process. The way that the club got around me and included me as normal, kept me driven to succeed, and added a sense of normalcy to my life. They raised more than $13,000 for Movember in 2018 and the support inspired me to get through treatment and recover as quickly as I could. To win the Canterbury competition that year and finish second in the country at the National Club Championships was a great way to feel like I’d accomplished something truly special.
Going through recovery put a lot of things in perspective. I no longer get stressed out or worry about insignificant things at work or in my personal life. When I’m struggling with work or feel like I’m becoming stressed over something, I find myself comparing it to the middle of my treatment and quickly realise that it could be a whole lot worse.
While what I went through doesn’t directly affect how I go about my day to day life, there still is the lingering thought in the back of my mind about whether or not it will come back. My physical and mental fitness is better than ever and overcoming testicular cancer makes me more driven to succeed. Knowing that I’ve overcome cancer, makes me feel like I can overcome any challenge that I face in the future.
That said, the most challenging part of the whole ordeal was putting my life on hold, whilst seeing all my friends and family enjoying theirs. When I was diagnosed, I had just moved to London and had just started a new career. It was the first time since leaving university that I finally felt that I had a purpose to drive me and I could see a promising future ahead. Whilst I put all that on hold, I saw a lot of my friends and family living their lives to the fullest and experiencing what I wanted for myself. It’s been hard to deal with that mentally and to not compare myself to them, but I’ve had great support from family and friends and I know that I’ll get back there soon.
Cancer has helped me realise what my priorities in life are and the impact I can have on others. It has brought my family and friends closer together and ultimately made me enjoy life more, knowing that I’ve overcome a pretty big challenge. Also, to help share my message to other men and spread awareness about men’s health has been hugely rewarding and hopefully will help more men become aware of issues around men’s health.
Every April is Testicular Cancer Awareness Month (TCAM) and Movember reaches out to young men in NZ to help them understand their risk and encourage these simple actions for prevention and treatment:
Checking your nuts on a regular basis is the best way to detect testicular cancer early. It only takes a few seconds every month or so.
If something changes or doesn’t feel right, see a doctor.
Encourage your mates to do the same, starting your own version of a Nutters club perhaps?
Visit movember.com to find out more about testicular cancer and all things men’s health.