Associating cancer with men is not a popular subject or topic of conversation in Savusavu.
“Men just do not like to talk about it, but we are trying to change that,” says Savusavu Chamber of Commerce president Ravi Chhaganlal.
He said November – commonly referred to as Movember the campaign to highlight prostate and testicular cancer in men – was a good platform to raise much-needed discussion on the issue.
Mr Chhaganlal said the chamber had drawn up plans to hold discussions and inform men within the town boundary about the need to talk about cancer by month-end.
“Movember is a good thing because it makes us realise the importance of discussing cancer that affects men and once we begin this conversation, we can move on to the next and most important area of urging men to get themselves tested,” he said.
“So many times the focus is on women and cancer so it’s good that we can now talk about cancer and men and we need to do this more often.
“I believe we can make a difference if we start talking about it now.”
As president of the chamber, he said, the awareness campaign plans would be conducted in partnership with all stakeholders.
“We will work with Health Ministry officials on this program because I believe we need to target areas that don’t have much access to information about cancer and men.
“People living in rural areas too need to be informed about this killer disease which affects many people and families.
“It’s all aimed at helping people, especially men, understand that cancer affects everyone and I believe we can make a difference.
“We start by helping ourselves live a healthy lifestyle, eat healthy food and do daily exercise which is very important.
“Some habits that are hard to get rid of such as smoking should be lessened and live a stress-free life, remain positive and be happy.”
Symptoms
Some common symptoms or signs that there could be issues with prostate include – difficulty starting urination, weak or interrupted flow of urine and frequent urination, especially at night.
Other symptoms that men need to look out for include difficulty emptying the bladder completely, pain or burning during urination and blood in the urine or semen.
Men should also get themselves checked if they experience pain in the back, hips, or pelvis that does not go away and if they have painful ejaculation during intercourse.
How to reduce the risk of cancer?
The Health Ministry says living a healthy lifestyle is a very good way to reduce the risk of cancer.
Some of the ways Fijian men can do this is by not smoking, eating a healthy diet, being active and maintaining a healthy weight, reducing alcohol intake, practising safe sex and avoiding risky behaviour and getting regular tests.
About 30 to 40 Fijian men are diagnosed with prostate cancer every year.
