Men’s health issues deserve to be treated with respect

• Reprints

WOMEN_IN_RED processed by IntelliTune on 23022007 153019 with script DR BOB RGB to CMYK test2

Updated: February 2, 2012 1:13PM

Dear Harriette: A friend of mine died of testicular cancer a few years ago. I have tried to bring up the need for awareness (there is a Breast Cancer Awareness Month, for example) at various forums but have been told by females at those forums that “testicles are gross,” so they shouldn’t be talked about.

Is this the way all females feel about men’s bodies? That we are gross, so we should just shut up and die?

Let me digress a bit: A man
had a health question on a medical forum website. It was a legitimate issue. Some women posted negative comments, claiming he was just trying to get women to read things about penises. I’m tired of women who think like that.

Everybody — not just men, should be aware of how to check for testicular cancer.

Fed Up in Chicago

Dear Fed Up: You have hit a cultural nerve. We Americans are largely so uncomfortable about our sexuality and our bodies that vile comments emerge at inappropriate times.

Of course we should be concerned about men’s health, including the health of their genitals. We should also stop assuming that any talk of a man’s anatomy is presented in a provocative, sexualized manner. Much attention has been drawn to breast cancer research and breast health in general. As a result, when health professionals recommend breast self-exams, mammograms or other procedures, women feel less discomfort because they receive the message in a medical or health context, not a sexual one.

Push back whenever people — female or male — post negative, sexualized comments when legitimate health concerns are being expressed. The more voices that join the discussion about serious men’s health issues, the better off our male population will be.

For more information on
testicular cancer: www.symptomfind.com/cancer/testicular-cancer.

Dear Harriette: Your remark to “Fashion Police” had one very dangerous element. You suggested the writer’s 80-year-old grandmother might be “safer” if she covered up when going out. If you’re suggesting the grandmother would be more likely to be the
victim of a sexual assault because of her clothing, you’re wrong. Statistically, there is no correlation between how a woman dresses and her likelihood of being attacked. Too often, how a woman is dressed has been used as an excuse by her attacker.

Being out alone may never be a great idea, but please be clear to your readers: Assault is not caused by hormone-crazed men reacting to seductive women. It is an act of power and violence that is 100 percent caused by the attacker, not by the victim.

Don’t Blame the Victim, Shreveport, La.

Dear Don’t Blame The Victim: You are right. There are sick people in the world who prey upon others, including those people who commit sexual assaults. Sadly, we have not yet figured out how to protect ourselves fully from these predators. I did not mean to make light of violent crime by suggesting the writer’s grandmother put on a coat when she goes outside.

You can send questions to askharriette at harriettecole.com or c/o Universal Uclick,
1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106.