Father’s Day: Knowledge is power when it comes to men’s health

This Father’s Day, doctors say one of the most meaningful gifts families can give the dads in their lives is a gentle nudge to schedule potentially life-saving health screenings and routine checkups.

The goal is simple: detect problems early, before symptoms appear and when they are often most treatable.

Dr. Andrew Thornton, a board-certified family medicine physician specializing in urgent care with Wellstar Health System, said studies show several factors keep men from seeking routine care, including discomfort with sensitive health issues and concerns about intimate exams.

Wellstar emergency room doctor Andrew Thornton listens to a patient's heart. He said surveys and studies show women are more likely to see a doctor than men. (Courtesy of Wellstar Health System)

“Men may also be less likely than women to seek healthcare for the same reason they are often less likely to ask for directions,” Thornton said. “Social norms and expectations can cause many men to feel that needing help — whether it is for a physical or mental/emotional concern — is a sign of weakness or possibly even a threat to their masculinity.”

Physicians, including Dr. Scott Miller, a longtime urologist with Wellstar Medical Group, say routine health screenings are critical.

“Knowledge is power,” Miller said. “Men are scared to get information, but that’s all it is — information. It’s all about how you use that information.”

The body, he said, is “very resilient, and that’s a great thing. But it’s a double-edged sword because what makes the body resilient also can mask some underlying conditions.”

Key screenings for men

For men, the best-known screening is the prostate-specific antigen, or PSA, test, a simple blood draw used to help detect prostate cancer. An unpopular second step in the screening, the digital rectal exam, has been dropped.

Miller said the goal of eliminating the digital exam is to encourage more men to get tested.

“(We’re) going to catch a lot more prostate cancers at an earlier stage, and that’s going to make it much easier to treat,” he said.

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force and the American Urological Association advise men ages 55 to 69 to discuss the benefits and risks with their physicians before deciding whether to be screened. Family history, race and other risk factors may warrant earlier screening.

“Screening guidelines focus on data from studies that prove that the benefits of screening outweigh the harms,” Thornton said. “Because prostate cancers are very common overall, are often slow-growing, and can sometimes take many years to become life-threatening, studies have been inconsistent in proving that screening all patients is worth the risk of ‘over-testing.’”

The other screening recommended specifically for men is a one-time ultrasound to check for an abdominal aortic aneurysm. It is generally recommended for men ages 65 to 75 who have a history of smoking.

Common recommendations by age

Beyond those male-specific screenings, preventive care focuses heavily on cardiovascular disease, diabetes and cancers that affect both men and women.