BODY SIGNAL ALERT TESTICLE, HARD LUMP IN: DESCRIPTION AND POSSIBLE MEDICAL PROBLEMS
In recent years, urologists have begun to recommend to their male patients that they get into the habit of checking their testicles each month for lumps and other growths they may find there, much as a gynecologist tells her patients to check their breasts each month.
Though problems occur more frequently in the prostate than in the testicles, it’s still a good idea to get into the habit of checking your testicles since tumors that occur in the testicles frequently turn out to be malignant. And, as is true for women, any lump you find in its early stages is not likely to be painful until later, by which time treatment may not be effective.
Check your testicles one at a time, preferably after a shower. Feel the surface of the testicle through the scrotum and note any new growths on the surface, rolling the testicle between the index finger and thumb of both hands as you go. You should also compare the size of the testicle with the size it was in last month’s exam. Is it harder or larger, or has it changed in any way? Once you’ve thoroughly checked one testicle, examine the other.
If you discover a lump on your testicle or notice any other changes, you should see your doctor or urologist right away. Although your risk of getting testicular cancer decreases as you get older, it’s important to check your testicles every month.
The good news is that a lump or mass on the testicle is often due to another problem that is easily remedied. You may have a benign growth—which is usually the case if the growth appears within the scrotum and not on the testicle itself—or a painless cyst that appears on the epididymis, the tube that stores sperm next to the testicle.
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