Pregnancy tests can tell men if they have testicular cancer

It’s true that men can test positive on a pregnancybut it doesn’t necessarily mean they are expecting a baby—it could be a sign that they have testicular cancer.

How is it possible?

To find out whether or not a woman is pregnant, the device looks for elevated levels of the beta human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) hormone. Interestingly enough, there are some types of testicular cancers that release the same hormone. Hence, if a man takes a pregnancy test and the test identifies these hormones in his urine, it will be positive. Urologist from Kelsey-Seybold Clinic, Dr. Philip Ho said:

We always hear about the husbands or significant others joking around and peeing on a stick and then it comes back positive which is almost an accidental finding that they kind of picked up on an early testicular cancer diagnosis.

How to check for testicular cancer

Pregnancy tests may be able to detect certain types of testicular cancer, but that doesn’t mean you need to be peeing on a stick every month to check for cancer. In fact, testicular cancer only accounts for 1% of all cancers faced by men.

It is also important to note that a negative pregnancy test isn’t a guarantee that you do not have cancer. So this might be a rather unreliable way to determine your health status. However, if you do happen to pee on a stick and it happens to be positive, then you definitely need to see a urologist ASAP.

A more accurate way of checking for testicular cancer is by doing a self-exam every month. Feel around and see if there are any unusual lumps or bumps. When you do this regularly you’ll be able to tell when something is strange right away. Keep in mind that most cancerous tumours are not painful, so if you feel one do not waste any time and see your doctor urgently.

According to Dr. Phillip Martin Pierorazio from John Hopkins Medicine, most men make the mistake of waiting for several months before making an appointment, which only gives the cancer more time to spread.