GAA endorses cancer initiative for men

THE GAA has endorsed an initiative to make men take better care of their health especially in relation to cancer.

Blue September is an attempt to raise awareness of bowel, lung, prostate and testicular cancer which affect men disproportionately.

GAA president Christy Cooney said support for Blue September was in keeping with their player welfare schemes.

He said men were inclined to be negligent about their health and often did not want to talk about it.

“When we have any sign of concern our health, we should act on it immediately.

“We [men] are not the most open of creatures. Women are better at expressing themselves and dealing with their situations.”

Taoiseach Enda Kenny launched the campaign yesterday on the steps of Government Buildings in his first public act since returning from holiday.

The initiative began in New Zealand in 2008 and seeks to address the traditional reluctance men have about looking after their health. Blue September Ireland will raise money for Cancer Care West, the Marie Keating Foundation, the Mater Foundation and the Mercy Hospital Foundation.

Well-known Mater hospital surgeon Gerry McEntee said many men would prefer to talk about sport than their health, with often serious consequences.

Mr McEntee, who specialises in liver, gall bladder and pancreatic surgery, says he has seen too many patients present with advanced cancers when they could have received life-saving treatment had they arrived earlier.

“Their cancers are picked up later, treatment is started later and their outcome is poorer,” he said. “When you look at the data at a national level, it is clear that men do less well with their cancers because in general they respond less quickly to health issues.”

Mr McEntee said there was a significant cultural difference between men and women which goes deeper than just health matters.

In general women talk to each other about lots of issues much more freely than men.

“They talk about their health, their homes, their families and their lives in general and in groups much better than we do.”