Men tend to think
differently from women about their bodies and health, with specific attitudes towards lifestyle behaviors involving
smoking, alcohol and diet. Coupled with the fact that significant numbers of men do not seek medical care or
participate in early cancer detection practices, and men are twice as likely as women to die from cancer. The Men's Health Forum, MHF, wants health professionals to act to develop
cancer prevention policies that take men into account. The MHF said that their analysis showed current cancer prevention
policies and programs are not working for men. As a result of these study findings, the MHF has formed a partnership with the publishers of Haynes car manuals to produce a new cancer guide in an effort to get men to take more of an interest in their health. The guide, designed in the same way as a car manual, provides information on how men can keep their bodies running like a finely-tuned engine. "Men are used to using information presented in this format. The body as machine metaphor resonates with the way many men think about health issues," stated Dr Ian Banks, MHF president and author of the manual. While the concept introduces an element of humor, the subject is serious business. MHF reports 134,000 men are diagnosed with cancer every year in the UK, with 80,000 dying of the disease.
1. As a 42 year old single male now in my 8th month in remission with mouth cancer I found this report both patronising and also factually incorrect. The sweeping generalisation that men do not "look after themsleves" in the same way is quite frankly rubbish. I will agree with you that not enough men have taken up the baton and promoted "cancer" as a killer for men in the same way breast cancer has done for women. After all the statistics for some cancers are bigger killers for men than women. cancer awareness, prevention is not a battle of the sexes, it is a terrible illness whether you are male of female.
The key thing with men is not the awareness of risk factors, because for example just as many women drink and smoke to excess as men in the UK. In afct more women are now being diagnoised with mouth cancer than ever before.
Men are often more reluctant to seek medical attention than woman, we do not have the same relationships with friends to talk about illness and to be frank if it was not for a female friend of mine begging me to go back to the Drs I would not eb here now.
I read an article that the highest death rates are amongst single men, and the article drew the correlation that men with partners were far more likley to be nagged to the Drs than single blokes.
We need to change our macho culture, starting with the press, raise awareness that cancer kills just as many men and break down 1000s of years of male macho culture which is quite frankly killing thousands each year.
Posted at 7:30AM on Apr 9th 2006 by Nigel Gooding