Sometimes, yes. And you can certainly do yourself some serious harm by not seeking help.
Don't be embarrassed to talk about cancer
Cancer can pop up in the most embarrassing places but the sooner you seek help for blood, lumps, sores, pain or weight loss, the better. Many cancers are now curable but only if you come forward to be cured.
I once met a man who let his testicle swell to 15cms – larger than a grapefruit – because he was embarrassed at having a lump down there and, as it got bigger, he was worried that his GP would think he was an idiot for sitting on it for so long. It wasn’t until it really pressed on the nerve endings that he sought help. He survived his cancer but lost a testicle that might well have been saved if he’d consulted earlier.
Another man asked for a visit when the pain in his testicles was so severe, he fainted. The pain had been excruciating for four hours, and he had a torsion on both sides (a twisting of the tissue that fixes the testicles in the scrotum). It can lead to irreversible damage if it isn’t swiftly untwisted under anaesthetic. His delay in asking for help also cost him a testicle.
The cycle of delay caused by embarrassment, fear, stoicism and misplaced optimism is common throughout medicine. It causes huge suffering and occasionally death, and isn’t always easy to predict. Some people are ashamed at having a sexually transmitted infection or shy about revealing a breast lump or rectal bleeding. Embarrassment can be a barrier in just about every chronic disease (epilepsy, asthma, diabetes), particularly if you’re overweight. As one of my friends confided: ‘I’ve just let a shoe assistant sell me completely the wrong shade of polish. The mistake was obvious but I didn’t say anything because she’d just think ‘Silly fat cow, what does she know?’ If overweight patients are too shy to buy shoe shine, imagine how hard they find it to access the NHS?
Recently, I’ve devoted the second half of my shows to audience questions, and given people the option of putting a hand up or writing a confidential query and dropping it off in Dr Phil’s sack. Some people are very forward in coming forward (one man asked why his scrotum looked 50 years older than he did) but I was amazed when I opened my sack to find how personal some of the queries were. For example, is it true that tomato ketchup reduces your risk of prostate cancer and how should I apply it? Can jogging make your boobs droop? And should I squeeze before I sneeze? I’ve now collected 250 of the quirkiest questions that people are too shy to take to a doctor but happy to scribble in the bar at a comedy gig.
Dandruff, warts, halitosis, prominent ears, acne, burst condoms, incontinence, dribbling, man boobs, excessive sweating, hairiness, impotence, cotton buds stuck in the ear, golf clubs stuck in the rear… just about any problem you care to name, someone’s delayed getting help for fear of the reception.
Receptionists are much friendlier than they used to be and doctors and nurses should be beyond embarrassment. We’ve seen it all. At least twice. These days I only turn pink after sex or if I fall asleep in the sun (hence the nickname Salmon Hammond). Check it out on a website first (www.embarrassingproblems.com is a good start), then go and show it to a doctor. Or that nice smiley nurse.
Dr Phil’s new book, ‘SEX, SLEEP OR SCRABBLE? Seriously Funny Answers To Life’s Quirkiest Questions’ is out in October.
This article first appeared in issue 9 of benhealth, the magazine for Benenden Healthcare members.
For peace of mind about cancer
Don’t forget that Benenden Healthcare members suffering from cancer can apply for financial assistance to help them with costs relating to home help, travelling to and from hospital, extra heating, prescriptions and specialist equipment hire, and so forth. Membership of Benenden Healthcare costs just £1.50 per person, per week, and you can even join Benenden Healthcare online.
