KNOW YOUR NUTS
"MY name is Ben, and I've got no nuts," one hell of an intro - but that's the point.
Ben Bowers lost not one but both his balls to testicular cancer over the last 11 years, and he wants to shout about it.
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The frank 38-year-old is passionate about testicles, tirelessly sharing his horror story to raise awareness among other blokes - that cancer is a very real threat, even if you're young.
He's a Mo Bro, a campaigner for the Movember Foundation, and an expert in all things testicular cancer.
It's the most common cancer in men aged 25 to 49, with around 2,300 cases diagnosed in the UK each year.
And at 26 years old the last thing Ben expected was to find a lump on one of his balls - and a cancerous one at that.
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"I was 25, turning 26, I worked in recruitment as a headhunter," he told The Sun Online.
"I was a pretty rotten person, so I probably deserved it."
But no one deserves it - and perhaps more importantly no one should HAVE to go through what Ben did.
If more blokes manned up about their health - and learned the signs something could be wrong, testicular cancer could be caught early and stopped in its tracks.
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The first sign he noticed something was wrong was when he developed a sharp pain in his bollock, likening it to "that feeling of being kicked in the nuts".
For a few days he tried to dismiss the pain, pushing it to the back of his mind.
But unable to ignore it any longer, he had a feel down there, and that's when he noticed the lump.
"I went on Google and sh*t myself," Ben, who lives in West Byfleet, admitted.
I wasn’t very good at seeing doctors, I was a typical man about it. I just thought if you leave it, it will get better. But because I did something about it I was really lucky
Ben Bowers
"Google only tells you you're going to die."
Then, Ben did something very out of the ordinary for him, and most blokes, he actually went to see a doctor. A real one.
"I wasn't very good at seeing doctors, I was a typical man about it," he said.
"I just thought if you leave it, it will get better.
"I was scared enough just finding a lump, let alone having to do something about it."
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A few tests and an ultrasound later confirmed Ben had testicular cancer, and he was diagnosed on the August Bank Holiday weekend of 2006.
"Because I did something about it, I was very lucky," he admitted.
"Three days later and I had surgery to cut off my bollock, I had visions of me walking round in circles.
"But once I had readjusted to the one bollock issue it was pretty straightforward."
KNOW YOUR NUTS
ALMOST half of blokes diagnosed with testicular cancer in the UK each year are UNDER the age of 35.
In most cases, guys with the disease have a good outcome, with 95 per cent surviving.
That is little comfort though to the one man in 20, and his family, who won't make it.
Testicular cancer starts as an abnormal growth or tumour that develops in one or both balls.
These men are at greater risk:
- those born with undescended testicles
- guys with a family history of the disease - a dad or brother who's had it for example
- men who have had testicular cancer before
What are the signs?
If you notice any of these signs and symptoms it's important to put your masculinity to one side, and visit a doctor ASAP.
- a lump - the most common sign of the disease. It can be as small as a pea but could be bigger but before you panic most lumps aren't cancer with just four in every ten turning out to be a sign of the disease
- a heavy scrotum
- discomfort or pain down there - one in five men describe a sharp pain as the first sign
Even if you have noticed these signs, chances are you don't have cancer. But it's vital to get it checked out and speak to your GP.
More tests showed the cancer hadn't spread and wasn't an aggressive type of the disease.
One month later it was back to hospital for Ben for a follow-up, and a thorough check of his solitary ball.
But then came a new challenge in Ben's already tough fight with cancer - the start of his mental battle.
"It was pretty hard, being 26 years old and having a life-threatening illness," he admitted.
"I was operated on within days, then a few days later you're just told to get on with life.
"And, I didn't, I couldn't really."
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Ben told The Sun Online he struggled with depression, living with a lingering fear hanging over him.
Then, three-and-a-half years later, he was lying in bed, engaged to be married, and that lingering fear became a horrible reality.
He found a lump on his last surviving testicle.
The now nearly 30-year-old, was told by doctors he faced a choice, they could remove the lump and leave the rest of his ball behind.
BE ON THE BALLS What is testicular cancer, what are the signs and symptoms and how is the disease treated?
But, if they removed just the lump, doctors warned they could give Ben no guarantee of how well the rest of his testicle would "work" afterwards.
A man's balls aren't just one of their most precious possessions, they perform two main functions.
One is to produce sperm to help blokes procreate, and the other is to produce hormones.
Among them the male sex hormone, testosterone is what makes a guy "manly" - and controls his sex drive.
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The more testosterone, the more "manly" and the higher a chap's sex drive will be.
Ben added: "They let you be all manly and get women pregnant."
But with just one testicle already, Ben and his then partner faced a big decision - to have the op or try for a baby.
"We decided to try and conceive naturally, and we were lucky enough that it worked," he said.
WHY SUPPORT MOVEMBER?
THE Movember Foundation dedicates their every waking minute to fighting to improve men's health.
Along with testicular cancer, the charity focuses it's efforts on prostate cancer and men's mental health.
Their aim is to stop men dying too young, with men living on average four years less than their female peers.
When it comes to testicular cancer the charity aims to HALVE the number of blokes dying from testicular cancer by 2030.
And by doing so, they will also halve the number of guys facing serious and ongoing side effects from testicular cancer treatment.
In order to do that their aims are:
- to take action EARLY - raising awareness to help blokes know the signs, symptoms and risk factors
- bring bright minds together to collaborate
- increase knowledge of the most lethal prostate cancer tumours, and how to stop them
- increase access to support services to help men deal with the side effects
- influence governments to provide affordable treatment and introduce new treatments faster
- encourage personalised treatment plans
- help men make tough choices
- raise the standard of testicular cancer treatment
- invest in global programmes that will mean better outcomes for men
But the Movember Foundation can't do this without YOUR support, visit their website to find out more HERE.
"My sperm wasn't even that good, but we got pregnant on Valentines day.
"We got married, came back from honeymoon and I had the operation to try and remove the lump."
A biopsy taken revealed the cancer was back, and Ben woke up from the op to the news he was nutless, both his balls now lost to cancer.
But this time the tests showed Ben's cancer had spread, to his lymph nodes, which meant he faced four months of "full on chemo".
"It was the worst thing I have ever had to do," Ben admitted.
Guys out there need to know the risks, and need to get to know their nuts. Check them regularly, and if there’s anything odd down there get it checked out by a doctor
Ben Bowers
"Take the worst hangover and multiple it by a thousand and then stretch it out everyday for four months.
"But, it saved my life, so I've got to be fairly thankful."
Despite losing both testicles, going through two major ops and enduring the hell that is chemo, Ben admits his biggest fight was fought in his head.
"For me, the biggest thing wasn't the physical challenge, but the mental one," he told The Sun Online.
Today, Ben works on behalf of the Movember Foundation, helping to raise vital funds for the charity.
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That money which totals more than £440million so far, has helped fund more than 1,200 men's health projects focusing on prostate and testicular cancer, mental health and suicide prevention.
The foundation uses the cash raised each year to invest in breakthrough research as well as those support programmes, all with an aim of helping guys live longer, happier lives.
Ben still has regular testosterone injections, which in his own words help ensure he's still "manly".
And now the 37-year-old has one mission in life, to get other guys talking.
"Guys are brought up to be strong, to not show any weakness," he told The Sun Online.
HAIR-RAISING FEAT What is Movember, how can you get involved and why is it important to the men in YOUR life?
"So we don't talk about our health, it's a masculine thing.
"But we need to get guys talking openly to each other.
"When I was diagnosed I called one of my oldest friends since school and told him, and he told me he had had a scare.
"He had never mentioned it to me!
"If we would just talk about it, it would make it normal and encourage others to do it.
"Guys out there need to know the risks, and need to get to know their nuts.
"Check them regularly, and if there's anything odd down there get it checked out by a doctor."
Wise, potentially life-saving, words of advise from a man who knows all too well the reality of what this disease can do.
MORE ON MOVEMBER
- The Sun is donating 1p to the Movember Foundation for every copy of this paper sold. Please do your bit by donating at movember.com/thesun
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