We’re speaking to former Cardiff Rugby player Lloyd Williams who is part of a new scheme aimed at diagnosing testicular cancer as early as possible. It comes in the form of an anti-doping kit, and is being made available to amateur athletes and sports teams across the country.
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00:00So, I think we need to be able to be comfortable in discussing these things on a daily basis
00:07and not to go quiet on these issues that start small but can end up big.
00:17Thousands of men are diagnosed with testicular cancer every year and like with any other
00:20form of cancer, the earlier you can be screened and diagnosed, the more likely a man is to
00:25survive. Health experts recommend men checking themselves for lumps and being proactive about
00:29risks of cancer, but it's not always obvious and official health checks are sometimes necessary
00:34to make sure someone does or doesn't have cancer.
00:38A new technology which has been available to professional athletes for some time is
00:43a simple way to check for cancer and comes in the form of an anti-doping kit. The tests
00:48are now being made available for amateur athletes to be able to check for cancer themselves,
00:52something rugby player Lloyd Williams says is an incredibly important step.
00:56We're taking part in a new testing process that is a very simple one and ten of us were
01:04chosen to try the new testing kit out, which was as simple as urinating into a tube and
01:10sending it off in the post, where you receive your results within a couple of weeks, which
01:16is very simple and refreshingly straightforward.
01:25Professional athletes have regular screenings, given the simplicity of tests alongside anti-doping
01:29kits, but they're now being rolled out among different sports in a bid to get non-professionals
01:34checked. Lloyd says that he wants to see as many men taking part in sports being a part
01:38of the testing kits and hopes it will save lives in the future.
01:42Having something so easy and simple is something that lends itself well for us to, well more
01:49teams, amateur and I'm not sure why not professional, can also use this testing process to help
01:58and to raise awareness and progress things.
02:03One benefit of the new tests is that they're very easy to take part in. It's a simple urine
02:07sample and you're all done.
02:09There's a lot of discussion around what to feel for and what to look for if you're in
02:16the shower or at home, but I guess having this, sometimes you're not really sure what
02:22you're looking for and the testing kit gives you that reassurance and feedback, the feedback
02:28that could save your life.
02:30Lloyd says it's something he's taken part of plenty of times in the past and thinks
02:34it's important for people that also now get the opportunity to take. It's a voluntary
02:38testing kit that can be a massive help to plenty of people, but it's still important
02:42to take regular personal checks to find lumps, which can often be the best way of finding
02:46a problem early.
02:47According to studies, nearly half of men don't regularly check themselves, despite how important
02:53it can be. So while raising awareness of the testing kits is important, those simple 30-second
02:58checks can really be a life saver.