I’ve had a third of my penis amputated after my ‘pants rubbing’ turned out to be cancer
AFTER noticing a small pea-sized lump on the left side of his penis, Joe Merrall booked in to see his GP.
Initially he was told he might have thrush or a sexually transmitted infection (STI).
But the personal trainer continued to struggle, with his symptoms including pain while urinating.
The 39-year-old also said that the lump was causing irritation when his pants rubbed on it.
Over the coming weeks, the lump started to cover the head of his penis, and even spread down to the shaft.
Just days before Christmas, on December 23, Joe was diagnosed with penile cancer and has now had to have a third of his penis removed.
Penile cancer is a rare cancer that mostly affects the skin of the penis and the foreskin.
In the UK around 700 men are diagnosed with penile cancer each year, in the US, this figure is around 2,050, the states.
In New Zealand, where Joe is based, around 1 out of 100,000 men a year also develop the condition.
Now Joe hopes that by sharing story, other men will check themselves on a regular basis.
Joe, from Auckland, New Zealand, said: “It was a small pea-sized lump on the left side of the head, which was sensitive.
“The first trip to the doctor she looked at it and gave me some cream. She took a swab and said to come back if it wasn’t going away and that she’d refer me to a specialist.
“I thought it was skin irritation from my penis rubbing on my pants, not an STI.
“At the end it was engulfed, the lump covered the urethra and grew down onto the shaft of my penis.
“It was really painful even if I moved and I couldn’t pee properly.”
He said he saw a specialist in October, but after that kept doing the ‘guy thing’ of putting off his appointments.
What are the signs of penile cancer you need to know?
THE NHS states that most cancers of the penis affect the skin covering the penis (the foreskin).
It can also affect the head or tip of the penis, guidance states.
The most common signs to look out for are:
- a growth or sore that does not heal within 4 weeks
- a rash
- bleeding from the penis or under the foreskin
- a smelly discharge
- thickening of the skin of the penis or foreskin that makes it difficult to pull back the foreskin (phimosis)
- a change in the colour of the skin of your penis or foreskin.
Guidance states that you might also experience a lump in the groin, feeling tired, stomach pain and losing weight without trying.
“They still managed to catch it early enough though,” he said.
Joe had surgery at North Shore Hospital in Auckland, New Zealand, last month where surgeons removed the tumour along with a 5mm margin. He is due to have a CT scan to see if the cancer has spread.
Joe said: “I experienced every emotion known to man when I got the diagnosis.
“I first found out two days before Christmas, it was the worst timing and it sent me down a spiral.
“I bottled it all up, I didn’t even want to go to the gym, I just thought ‘what’s the point?’.
“The surgery was 90 minutes, in total they took more than a third of my penis.
“It looks weird the way they’ve sewn it up. My [urine] flow is all over the show. I’m still adjusting but they may well tidy it up at some stage.
“I’ll be able to have sex again, but it’s still quite tender.”
Since his ordeal, Joe said he has felt like ‘less of a man’, but added that he has opened up to female friends and exes.
“They said it was brave to talk about it and that ‘I would still go there’. I was like ‘that’s fantastic’.”
Joe added that if he can share his experience to help one or two people then he’s ‘done some good’.
“I would say to people to check yourself, know your normal and anything not normal go to the doctor about it and get yourself checked. Better safe than sorry,” he added.
Due to his job as a personal trainer, Joe is unable to work while he recovers.
He is now trying to to support him financially during this time and he also runs a scheme called Move 4 Mental Health, to help people improve their mental health through the power of physical exercise.
