Go ahead. Touch yourself.

Nuts, balls, gonads, junk, yes we’re talking about guy’s testicles. As a gay guy, I like mine and others.

April is Testicular Cancer awareness month. Since moving to Fort Lauderdale I’ve been meeting some great people. One of which Renee Platiau. Renee lost her 19-year-old son, Hunter Lee McGhee, just 8 months ago to testicular cancer. One day he was coughing up blood. Renee took him to the emergency room where he was diagnosed with stage 4 testicular cancer. Because he didn’t know what to look for and never talked about it, it had the opportunity to advance spreading to his lungs and lymph nodes.

Had Hunter known the signs and felt comfortable talking about his balls with her, a teacher, a friend or a sexual partner he might still be living a healthy life.

It’s never easy when you lose a family member, but to watch your child get sicker and sicker when if it were caught earlier it may have been curable. His chances would have been so much greater.

Renee is doing her best to cope with the loss of her son. She has started to network with local school district health and sex education teachers as well as youth sporting groups to get the word out. She has obtained a first small shipment of literature including a wallet-sized pocket guide for testicular self-exam title “Go Ahead, Touch Yourself” from the Testicular Cancer Awareness Foundation.

The Testicular Cancer Awareness Foundation (TCAF) provides

• Literature
• Online information
• Resources
• Financial Aid
• Online Support Community
• … and so much more

Signs & symptoms

According to the TCAF, in most cases, early stages of testicular cancer present themselves in a completely painless manner. The early warning signs and symptoms are:

• A lump of any size on the testicle
• A dull ache or sense of pressure in the lower abdomen or back
• Enlargement of the testicle, change in shape, size or any irregularities
• Pain or discomfort in the scrotum or testicle
• A feeling of heaviness or fullness in the scrotum
• Enlargement or tenderness of the breasts due to elevated hormone levels

Check out their website along with their self-exam instructions.

• Leading cancer in men ages 15-44
• Catching it early greatly increases chances of beating it
• In the United States alone, every hour and male is diagnosed
• Every day a life is lost

Check yourself and your sexual partner(s). Renee says, “Everyone should be aware.”

About the author: Dennis Velco

An LGBTQ social entrepreneur who focuses on strengthening the global LGBTQ+ through connecting, engaging, online, and in person.