Movember: Male Cancer Awareness Month

Movember: Men’s health matters just as much

The word Movember comes from the contraction of the syllable “Mo”, meaning mustache in Australian slang and “November” in English, which simply corresponds to the month of November in French. This month is mustache month. Indeed, the Movember Foundation Charity encourages gentlemen to grow a mustache for a good cause. The reason: to raise awareness on a global scale of all men about the male health and more specifically, on prostate and testicular cancer. These are two very common cancers in men. According to Public Health France, the leading cause of death in men is cancer. The estimate of the total number of cancer deaths stands at 157,000, of which 57% were in men in 2018.

Men have less medical follow-up than women who consult their gynecologist regularly. Screening campaigns for male cancers are almost non-existent. This is why, in 2003, the charity association Movember Fondation Charity was born thanks to two brothers. They realized that men were dying too young and subsequently decided to launch an awareness campaign on men’s health.

Prostate cancer: the 1st cancer in men

According to the National Cancer Institute, prostate cancer is the most common cancer. Very rare before the age of 50, its fire rate increases with age. In 2015, 50,430 new cases of prostate cancer were diagnosed in France. Nearly 8,100 men died from this cancer in 2018.

Even though the death rate has decreased according to the estimates of theNational Cancer Institute, the fact remains that no mass screening is carried out – unlike breast cancer in women during Pink October for example. That is why, from the age of 45, it is recommended to monitor your health, gentlemen.

Testicular cancer: a common cancer in young people

With regard to testicular cancer, according to the ARC Foundation for cancer research, it accounts for 1-2% of cancers in men. In addition, it fairly frequently affects young adults between 15 and 35 years old.

For testicular cancer, the appearance of symptoms is not systematic. This is why – as with women for breast cancer – a good reflex is the palpation of the testicles. After the discovery of a mass, the disease is suspected and additional examinations must be carried out.

If you want to support Movember, you can make a donation on the online platform. Since the creation of the association, no less than 1250 projects around the health of men in the world have seen the light of day, thanks to the money collected. In addition, to have fun while doing a good deed, you can also participate in many events in all of France.