Exercise after prostate cancer

Exercise after prostate cancer

Cancer Exercise Men's health

Professor Trish Livingston from Deakin University has been undertaking research with her colleagues about the benefit of exercise programs for men diagnosed with prostate cancer.  With around 20,000 diagnosed cases each year in Australia, this study has important implications for maintaining quality of life for these men.  Read about the study and the benefits of exercise physiology in The Conversation article published today, A prescription for better health: exercise after prostate cancer. 

The full study was also published today in the journal Cancer: Effects of a clinician referral and exercise program for men who have completed active treatment for prostate cancer: a multicenter cluster randomized controlled trial (ENGAGE). One group of clinicians referred their clients to a twelve week exercise program, while another group followed normal care regimes.  "The clinician referral and 12-week exercise program significantly improved vigorous exercise levels and had a positive impact on mental health outcomes for men living with prostate cancer".  he article is available freely on open access. 

Prostate Cancer in Australia

Prostate Cancer in Australia

Cancer Men's health

This is the first comprehensive national report on prostate cancer in Australia by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW). It presents an overview of the condition and analysis of key summary   measures including incidence, mortality and survival. Findings include: - Prostate cancer is the most commonly diagnosed cancer in Australia (excluding non-melanoma skin cancer), with 21,808 new diagnoses in 2009. - Prostate cancer is the fourth leading cause of mortality among Australian males, with 3,294 deaths from prostate cancer in 2011. - Around 9 in 10 (92%) males diagnosed with prostate cancer survive 5 years from diagnosis. This is higher than for all cancers (65%). (AIHW 14 November 2013)

A Review of Sexual Health Services for Gay, Bisexual and Other Men who have sex with men in Western Australia: survey report July 2013

A Review of Sexual Health Services for Gay, Bisexual and Other Men who have sex with men in Western Australia: survey report July 2013

Men's health Sexual Health

The aim of this review was to describe the characteristics of men who have sex with men (MSM) accessing both hospital and community-based sexual health services in the Perth metropolitan area and assess the acceptability of these services to the MSM who access them. The majority of new HIV diagnoses in Australia are in gay, bisexual, and other (MSM). Providing accessible, appropriate and acceptable sexual health services is essential as a significant proportion of MSM are not testing for HIV and sexually transmitted infections (STIs) at the recommended frequency (at least once per year for sexually active MSM, and more often for higher risk men). Recognised barriers to testing include not having enough time to test and difficulty getting an appointment.

In July 2010, a new community-based clinical service employing peer workers targeting gay and bisexual men opened in West Perth. M Clinic, managed by the Western Australian AIDS Council (WAAC), complements traditional hospital-based sexual health services already operating in Perth and Fremantle. Until this project, no external evaluation of acceptability among MSM clients involving all of these services had been undertaken. The report was authored by Damian Conway, Martin Holt, Michael Atkinson, Lewis Marshall, Jenny McCloskey, Patricia Langdon, Denton Callander and Rebecca Guy of the Kirby Institute. (APO 30/7/13)

Prostate cancer survey

Prostate cancer survey

Cancer Men's health

The Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia has published the results of a recent survey which found that young Australian men are aware that prostate cancer is the most important health issue facing men, but know little about the disease or what testing actually involves.

The survey, reported in Prostate Cancer: the next generation, marks the first time in eleven years that Prostate Cancer Foundation of Australia (PCFA) has surveyed a younger group -1200 Australian men aged 18 to 50 years - as opposed to the 40-74 age group in previous years.  58% of participants believed prostate cancer to be the most single important health issue facing men. Although 49% believed men should be tested from age 40 onwards, 63% of this year's younger cohort said they know little about the procedures involved in prostate cancer testing.

Health of Australia's males

Health of Australia's males

Men's health

The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare has recently published two new reports on men's health.

The health of Australia's males: from birth to youngadulthood (0-24 years) focuses on health conditions and risk factors that are age-specific (such as congenital anomalies) and those where large sex differences are observed (such as injury). In 2011, 3.7 million males (more than one-third of the Australian male population) were aged 0-24. While males aged 0-24 are more likely to be hospitalised or die from injury than females of the same age, they are similarly likely to be overweight or obese and less likely to smoke tobacco daily.  Almost 1 in 4 (23%) males aged 16-24 had experienced symptoms of a mental disorder, and 4 in every 1,000 males aged 18-24 had been diagnosed with a psychotic disorder. In spite of this, rates of help seeking among young males are low (13%).

The health of Australia's males: 25 years and over continues and completes the life course by focusing on males aged 25 and over.  Males aged 25 and over in 2011 can expect, on average, to live to 80 or over. One in 10 males aged 50-59 (11%) and 60-69 (10%) are, on a daily basis, at risk of injury resulting from excessive alcohol. In 2010 coronary heart disease was the leading cause of death in this group, followed by lung cancer.  Married males have lower mortality rates compared with their never married counterparts-8.1 compared with 12.8 deaths per 1,000 population.

Impact of technologies on young men's mental health

Impact of technologies on young men's mental health

Information technology Men's health Mental health

The Young and Well Cooperative Research Centre has published its first national survey, Game on: exploring the impact of technologies on young men's mental health and wellbeing.  Some troubling results from the survey of 14 young men aged 16-25 indicate the failure of our mental health system to address the needs of this group:

• Nearly one in five felt that life is hardly worth living
• Nearly one in ten had thought about taking their own life
• 42% had experienced psychological distress

The report suggests that using technologies which match current online behaviour could offer hope for improving the wellbeing of this group.  The young men who reported moderate to very high levels of psychological distress were more likely to talk about problems on the Internet, or to use the Internet to find information about their issues.