Doctors are sounding the alarm over a lack of awareness about a cancer that is rising quickly among young men.

Testicular cancer is the most common form of cancer among men aged 20 to 40 years, and affects nearly 10,000 men every year.

But an Ohio State University survey has found that almost 90 percent of adults do not believe that the cancer will strike before a man’s 40th birthday. 

And only 35 percent said they would consider it necessary to start screening for the disease before this age.

That’s despite the cancer — that affects one in 270 young men every year — becoming more common in young men.

The researchers say the findings are concerning, given the disease is more difficult to treat when it is caught in later stages.

Dr Shawn Dason, the urologist who led the study, said: ‘Testicular cancer does not typically come with painful symptoms. That’s why routine self-exams are so important to detect any lumps or changes to the testicle.’

He added: ‘In my experience, a lot of men are surprised that testicular cancer is most common among young men.

Nathan Adrian, a five-time Olympic gold medallist, was diagnosed with testicular cancer at age 30 after feeling a hard lump and swelling

He revealed his diagnosis to raise awareness of the cancer, which is rising among young men

‘It’s something you’re just not expecting in your twenties or thirties. A lot of young men’s focus might be on developing their career, their day-to-day life. That’s a very different track of mind than perhaps your health.’ 

For the survey, researchers questioned 1,008 adults in the US — of whom just under half were men while the rest were women. Half were also under the age of 40.

Results showed that just over half of respondents said it was important to carry out monthly checks for the cancer.

Only 13 percent said that testicular cancer was most commonly affecting men under 40 years old. 

Meanwhile, 63 percent correctly noted the disease was more likely to be curable if it was caught early, and 18 percent wrongly suggested the disease was always painful.

The most common symptoms of the disease include a lump or swelling in the scrotum or a feeling of heaviness in the scrotum.

Overall, the cancer has a five-year survival rate of about 95 percent if it is caught in the early stages before it has spread in the body.

If it spreads, however, this drops to 73 percent.

Dr Dason added: ‘We are really fortunate in testicular cancer that the vast majority of patients are diagnosed at an early stage.

‘That means the vast majority of patients are actually diagnosed before the cancer has had an opportunity to spread to other parts of the body.’ 

It’s thought that testicular cancer affects younger men because it predominantly affects the germ cells, or the reproductive cells that make sperm, which are most active at this age.

Studies suggest that people who are taller, from a White ethnic background and have a family history of the disease have a higher risk, although some studies suggest that being overweight does not raise the risk.

And rates are now rising, which is now thought to be due to a mixture of better screening and linked to the broader rises in cancer diagnoses among young people. 

Lance Armstrong, a famous cyclist, was also diagnosed with testicular cancer in 1996 at the age of 25 years

A 2024 study on testicular cancer in California found that, among those under 39 years old, the rate of the cancers had risen by about 10 percent in two decades from six to 7.3 cases per 100,000 people.

Data from the CDC also shows an uptick in testicular cancer cases in the age group, with the rate rising from 6.3 to 6.8 cases per 100,000 men aged 0 to 39 years from 1999 to 2021 — the latest date available.

First line of treatment for the disease is surgery, with doctors normally removing the tumor and testicle that is affected.

Further tests are then carried out to establish whether the disease has spread, before other treatments are offered like surgery to remove lymph nodes and chemotherapy.

Among those to have previously battled the cancer is cyclist Lance Armstrong, who was diagnosed with the disease in 1996 at the age of 25 years, and five-time Olympic Gold Medalist Nathan Adrian, who was diagnosed at age 30 years.

The 6ft 6in swimmer was diagnosed with stage two testicular cancer in December 2018 amid training for Tokyo 2020 — saying he went to doctors after feeling something swollen and hard in his scrotum.

He had surgery to remove the tumor in his scrotum a few weeks later and, after further tests, also had a second surgery to remove some lymph nodes that were feared to also contain the cancer.

JMichael Shipman, from Texas, was also diagnosed with the cancer at the age of 21

He was back swimming a few weeks later, and said that he will now monitor for any new cancers via surveillance.

In another case, JMichael Shipman revealed in 2018 that he had been diagnosed with testicular cancer at the age of 21 years.

The Texas local said he booked into MD Anderson Cancer Center after finding a large lump on his right testicle in February 2017.

Two days later he was put through for surgery, and then had one round of chemotherapy.

He also froze his sperm before the chemotherapy after being told that the regimen could make a man infertile for up to two years. It isn’t clear whether he’s now had children. 

The Ohio State University survey was conducted between May 2 and 5 this year using the SSRS Opinion Panel Omnibus, a twice-monthly survey of a representative sample of the US public.

Of the respondents, 978 filled in answers to the questions via the web while 30 responded via the telephone.