MOVEMBER
It’s that time of year when men, all over the world, also known as Mo Bro’s are committing to growing a moustache for the 30 days of Movember to raise awareness and vital funds for men’s health, specifically prostate cancer and testicular cancer.
Movember originally started in Melbourne Australia and has grown to become a global movement. In 2011 alone, over 854,000 people around the world helped in raising £79.3 million.
The idea behind Movember is that the Mo Bros literally become walking, talking billboards for the cause.
For the entire month each Mo Bro must grow and groom a moustache. That’s not all there are also rules to Movember, such as;
– There is to be no joining of the mo to the sideburns (that’s considered a beard)
– There’s to be no joining of the handlebars to the chin (that’s considered a goatee)
– Each Mo Bro must conduct himself like a true gentleman.
It’s not only men who can get involved women can too, known as Mo Sista’s. Obviously we can’t grow a moustache but we can be can support the cause. A Mo Sista is an individual that is dedicated to supporting the Mo Bros in her life through their moustache growing journey; whether it be a friend, colleague, family member or partner. These inspirational women are committed to raising awareness of men’s health issues and much needed funds for men’s health along the way.
No matter the country or city, Movember will continue to work to change established habits and attitudes men have about their health, to educate men about the health risks they face, and to act on that knowledge, thereby increasing the chances of early detection, diagnosis and effective treatment.
How common is testicular cancer?
- Around 2,200 men in the UK were diagnosed with testicular cancer in 2009.
- Testicular cancer is rare before puberty but is the most common cancer of men aged 15-49 in the UK.
- Incidence of testicular cancer has more than doubled in Britain since the mid-1970s.
- Testicular cancer incidence is rising, particularly in white men.
How many men survive testicular cancer?
- Since the introduction of combination chemotherapy in the 1970s, survival rates for testicular cancer have risen every year to cure rates of over 95%.
- Now, more than 95% of men with testicular cancer are cured, compared to less than 70% in the early 1970s.
How many men die from testicular cancer?
- In the UK in 2010 around 70 men died from testicular cancer.
- Testicular cancer death rates have fallen by 80% since the mid-1970s.
What are the main causes testicular cancer?
- Men who have been diagnosed with testicular cancer have a 12 fold increased risk of being diagnosed with a second cancer of the testis.
- Men with a first-degree relative with testicular cancer have up to 10 times the risk of testicular cancer compared to men without a family history of the disease.
- White men have a higher risk of testicular cancer than men of other ethnicities.
- A condition where one or both testes have not descended into the scrotum, known ascryptorchidism, increases the risk of testicular cancer.
- Men with low fertility have a higher risk of testicular cancer.
PROSTATE CANCER UK
Prostate Cancer UK fights to help more men survive prostate cancer and enjoy a better quality of life. They use money raised by the Movember Foundation to fund groundbreaking research and to give men the support and information they need. Services include a dedicated team of specialist nurses and one-to-one support from other men who’ve ‘been there’.
THE INSTITUTE OF CANCER RESEARCH
The Institute of Cancer Research uses the money raised by Movember to fund research into male cancers, focusing on testicular cancer, to further broaden the impact on men’s health.
MOVEMBER FOUNDATION
The Movember Foundation uses the money raised to fund two programmes: an awareness and education programme that significantly increases the understanding and reduces the stigmas of the health risks that men face, and Movember’s Global Action Plan that accelerates key outcomes in prostate cancer research by facilitating global research collaboration projects.
