Wow. To be perfectly honest with you, I am a little bit upset. Does the fact that I am a kidney cancer patient and the husband of a wife who has been diagnosed with breast cancer, make me a subject matter expert? No, it doesn’t. But I will say this: my wife and I learned a lot during our cancer journey and what makes me really angry when I do research on a topic related to cancer, and the top search results that come back in the search engines are sites that absolutely provide no value or even worse, blatantly incorrect information. Sorry, I had to vent.

Alright, let’s talk about the most common testicular cancer symptoms or more specifically, what is most commonly seen as symptoms of testicular cancer in men. 

  • Swelling of one or both testicles
  • Localized Pain
  • Lumps

It is important to note that the aforementioned signs of testicular cancer might be indicative of other, less severe health conditions. Other, less frequently reported symptoms include heavy discomfort and pain in the lower abdomen that might cause the patient to feel nauseous. Again, this is obviously rather vague and does not conclusively mean that you need to fear a testicular cancer diagnosis. As a matter of fact, the vast majority of patients who encounter these symptoms will get diagnosed with something else but cancer.

Early sings of testicular cancer

I know that it is being recommended to perform regular self exams to check on anything out of the ordinary that might point to testicular cancer. And I personally do agree with that. It is very similar to what is suggested to women – regular self breast exams to detect any abnormalities such as lumps. So the same applies to us males. And as funny as it may sound, yes, check your testicles on a regular basis. You don’t know how? Well, just read and/or download this excellent document provided by the American Cancer Society: Do I have Testicular Cancer?

In cases of testicular cancer, there is usually a painless lump which is attached to one of the testicles. Very rarely, the patient actually experiences any pain.  It is possible that the affected testicle is swollen. However, it is important to realize that each testicle has an epididymis which can be mistaken by a lump. And here is my point: Yes, do yourself exams, but don’t freak out if you think you found anything unusual. Because first of all, you don’t even know what ‘unusual’ is and secondly, it does not necessarily mean that you will get diagnosed with testicular cancer.

Alright, so make sure that you get your annual physical done. Don’t be a wimp and say you won’t need annual physicals. I also know that some men think that it is weird to have their primary physician doing a testicular cancer check by touching their genitals. Well, let me tell you what’s weird – weird is when your doctor calls you to tell you that you have cancer. I’ve been through that and I want you not to have to go through the same. So get out there and have your nuts checked. It might save your life.