Thanks to a vigilant woman, Phil Williams is alive today. His wife Sandy spotted a growth in his testicles and forced him to see a doctor. Now recovered from testicular cancer, the couple run their own helpline for other sufferers

THERE'S no denying it - every mother, wife, girlfriend and sister knows that men just don't know how to look after themselves. They'll go for weeks coping 'bravely' with an ache or pain, keeping it secret from everyone in the belief that it will soon go away.

But trying to maintain that macho image can be fatal, as Phil and Sandy Williams well know. Phil believes Sandy did nothing short of saving his life when she stepped in and told his GP about an ache in one of his testicles, which turned out to be testicular cancer. Because it was caught at an early stage, Phil was successfully treated and has now been clear of cancer for nearly 20 years.

Phil, 51, of Blighmont Crescent, Regents Park, Southampton, said "I've got my wife to thank for that because I was just doing the typical man thing and thinking 'if I ignore it, it will go away'.

"We've known people who did leave it longer and have had further operations because they've had quite a serious spread. We had a close friend who died at 36 of testicular cancer, and it just brings home the fact that while it's a very survivable disease, it can also kill you."

Testicular cancer is a malignant tumour that develops from cells within the testes - the two small, oval-shaped organs on either side of the penis which produce and store sperm and the hormone testosterone. Symptoms include a painless lump or swelling in the testicle, as well as pain, discomfort or a sudden collection of fluid in the scrotum.

Phil, a recruitment consultant, was 29 and working as a TV engineer when he developed a "dull ache" in one of his

testicles.

"I assumed that because I was lifting quite heavy equipment all the time, I had simply lifted something a bit too heavy and strained myself. I just ignored it for about six months, thinking it would eventually go away," he said.

But towards the end of 1978, Phil's breathing became laboured and he was confined to bed with pleurisy, which developed into pneumonia. When the doctor visited, it was Sandy who stepped in and pressed Phil to mention his aching, and by now enlarged, testicle.

He said: "It was fortunate that Sandy - like a lot of wives - reminded me about it in front of the doctor because at that particular time I would not have mentioned it. Perhaps later on, if the whole thing had persisted, I would have got it checked out.

"I had no idea I had something wrong with me that was potentially lethal. Two weeks later I saw a specialist and within two weeks I had an operation at Southampton General Hospital to have the testicle removed, followed by a course of

radiotherapy."

Sandy, 50, said: "I noticed right from the start that something was not quite right and I urged Phil to get it checked out, but like a typical man, his reaction was 'I'll see about it later - I haven't got time'.

"Of course, later never comes and I suppose it was fortuitous that he ended up being ill at home. The doctor was coming out to see him and I said to Phil it was a case of either you tell him or I do."

She added: "Neither of us realised what the problem was because we had never heard of testicular cancer before. I just thought the doctor would give him some antibiotics or say 'it's quite normal, there's nothing to worry about'.Neither of us thought he would go straight into hospital."

Phil and Sandy, who have a 26-year-old son and a 24-year-old daughter, are now backing a new campaign by the Imperial Cancer Research Fund, which aims to encourage men to take more responsibility for their own health. The Dads and Lads campaign focuses on raising awareness of testicular and prostate cancer, as well as other cancers affecting men of all ages.

Phil and Sandy have also set up a helpline from their home, funded by the Wessex Cancer Trust, to provide advice to men, as well as their wives, mothers, and girlfriends.

Phil said: "Our message is to encourage men to self-examine on a monthly basis and if they have a problem with their testicle, to see a doctor. I think there are still a lot of men who don't think testicular cancer is something which does strike young men, but we are at our most vulnerable between the ages of 15-35."

And Sandy is urging all women to be vigilant too, by looking out for the men in their lives. She said: "Men are terribly, terribly ignorant - it's a fact that they don't really know how to look after themselves. I've found it's the wives and girlfriends who have to hassle the men if they've got a problem.

"I would say to all the wives, girlfriends and mothers out there that if they have physically got to take their husband's, boyfriend's or son's hand and drag them down to the doctors' surgery, take them. In our case it was something that desperately needed attention."

n For more information contact Phil and Sandy's helpline on 023 8077 5611, or the Wessex Cancer Trust website at /www.wessexcancer.org>www .wessexcancer.org

n A free leaflet

providing advice on symptoms of prostate and testicular cancer is available by sending an A5 stamped, addressed envelope to: Testicular Cancer/Prostate Cancer Symptoms Leaflet, Communications Department, Imperial Cancer Research Fund, PO Box 124, Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, WC2A 3PX.