Do men deserve equal healthcare?

[msc545]

I am finally figuring out what it feels like to be discriminated against and marginalized. Today, I received from my local hospital (where I am on staff), a wonderful color brochure about their breast cancer center, complete with glossy photos and testimonials. It really made the facility look great, and that is fine. The trouble is, they don't have a prostate cancer center, or a men's health program, or anything at all that is directed at men. Nada. there are a shitload of health programs for women, however.

Today I also read all about the HUGE uproar because the government will no longer make the taxpayers fund women's birth control. They actually have to buy it themselves, or more likely buy it with some man's money. Gasp! The indignity and insult of having to pay for your OWN medications!

Conversely, our national health plans have never paid for Viagra (which is obscenely expensive), and never will. ED is a major precipitator of suicide in older men, yet the government regards men as disposable and male suicide as an inconvenience at worst. Nobody really gives a fuck if men live or die. Research on prostate cancer is grossly underfunded because it doesn't affect women at all since no woman has a prostate. The only time a woman is affected is when her human ATM machine dies, and she has to find a new one, or even... gasp... get a job.

I've had a *really* bad day.

[KrakenAttackin]

I remember reading that 3x as much funding is spent on research for women's health issues as is spent on men's health. This is especially curious as women already outlive men and are a larger percentage of the population.

Yeah, fuck men.

[whirled_up_girl]

Do you have a credible source for that because it's only been in the past couple of decade that women were even included in most clinical drug trials, as this link mentions. orwh.od.nih.gov/toolkit/recruitment/history and according to this other article funding patterns in research favor males https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33232627

Feel free to find a source and prove me wrong though.

[OddBeMe]

Mmm.. so really our health care system just sucks.

[msc545]

I think we all recognize that our Healthcare System is really poor. What we're talking about here is just a difference in how poor it really is for men versus women. But really it's poor for everybody.

[OddBeMe]

And it’s crazy to think giving free preventive supplies and checkups saves billions in the long run but might cost a few million now. Americans aren’t good at wider thinking.

[msc545]

You just described zero-sum bias.

[OddBeMe]

And a potential non-zero sum solution.

[msc545]

yes...

[NathanDavis]

How common is breast cancer in men?

The American Cancer Society estimates for breast cancer in men in the United States for 2023 are:

• About 2,800 new cases of invasive breast cancer will be diagnosed
• About 530 men will die from breast cancer
  
  Breast cancer is about 100 times less common among white men than among white women. It is about 70 times less common among Black men than Black women. As in Black women, Black men with breast cancer tend to have a worse prognosis (outlook). For men, the lifetime risk of getting breast cancer is about 1 in 833 .

-------------------------- also ----------------------

Key Statistics for Prostate Cancer

How common is prostate cancer?

Other than skin cancer, prostate cancer is the most common cancer in American men. The American Cancer Society’s estimates for prostate cancer in the United States for 2023 are:

• About 288,300 new cases of prostate cancer
• About 34,700 deaths from prostate cancer
  
  The number of prostate cancers diagnosed each year declined sharply from 2007 to 2014, coinciding with fewer men being screened because of changes in screening recommendations. Since 2014, however, the incidence rate has increased by 3% per year overall and by about 5% per year for advanced-stage prostate cancer.

Risk of prostate cancer
About 1 man in 8 will be diagnosed with prostate cancer during his lifetime.

Prostate cancer is more likely to develop in older men and in non-Hispanic Black men. About 6 cases in 10 are diagnosed in men who are 65 or older, and it is rare in men under 40. The average age of men when they are first diagnosed is about 66.

Deaths from prostate cancer

Prostate cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in American men, behind only lung cancer. About 1 man in 41 will die of prostate cancer.

Prostate cancer can be a serious disease, but most men diagnosed with prostate cancer do not die from it. In fact, more than 3.1 million men in the United States who have been diagnosed with prostate cancer at some point are still alive today.

The prostate cancer death rate declined by about half from 1993 to 2013, most likely due to earlier detection and advances in treatment. Since then, however, the pace of decline has slowed, likely reflecting the rise in cancers being found at an advanced stage.

[whirled_up_girl]

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer deaths in both men and women and I haven't seen many cancer centers dedicated to the diagnosis of just lung cancer in my state. https://www.lung.org/lung-health-diseases/lung-disease-lookup/lung-cancer/resource-library/lung-cancer-fact-sheet

Ofcourse men deserve equal healthcare, both men and women do. However, men and women are biologically different, and it is important that health organizations try to balance those differences so as not to exclude either sex from effective diagnosis or treatment. There are however, rich donors sometimes or other entities that will fund specific health centers for specific populations. I'm not sure I agree with it but there is a lot of health care disparties out there across different populations of people. In my town we have a cancer center for the diagnosis and treatment of many common cancers and I agree that should be the way it is.

As for viagra and erectile dysfunction sadly many medicare part D plans and private insurance companies don't cover drugs needed for sex. Some won't even cover topical estrogen for post menopausal women so they can have pain free intercourse as this article points out. https://khn.org/news/the-high-cost-of-sex-insurers-often-dont-pay-for-drugs-to-treat-problems/

[lightbulb27]

yes we do.

squeeky wheel gets the grease...

women are squeeky...

most people don't give a crap about men, but some do and go out intentionally to help those who've fallen down. Men do have to learn to be vulnerable and ask for help.

...

"The mother of a problem child was advised by a psychiatrist, "You are far too upset and worried about your son. I suggest you take tranquilizers regularly." On her next visit the psychiatrist asked, "Have the tranquilizers calmed you down?" "Yes", the boy's mother answered. "And how is your son now?" the psychiatrist asked. "Who cares?" the mother replied."

Women are like telephones. They love to be held. They love to be talked to. But, if you press the wrong button, you're disconnected.

[whirled_up_girl]

I've worked as a nurse for years and never have I or anyone I worked with thought that men and boys health problems were less important than women and girls health problems.

[lightbulb27]

@whirled_up_girl im glad to hear that. look around for support systems for broken down men... not many. men are different, more difficult socially.
he pointed out above some gaps in the medical system.
but yes, in an ER or hospital, men will get their time by a good nurse.

[Soteris]

Not sure what you are talking about. First of all, USA does subsidize Viagra for men. Secondly, this is a funding issue and a broader issue with all of healthcare in USA being underfunded due to the shitty privatized system. As such it makes perfect sense that they can provide greater services if they for example receive the funding they require to operate at an expected level from donations.

The question is not "Why does the female health center work", rather "Why is the rest of healthcare failing?"

[Slingblade1126]

My dad takes viagra for Pulmonary Hypertension, a rare and life threatening disorder. You are absolutely correct! He pays over a thousand dollars a month and that's with insurance. Most insurances won't even cover it for ED. Fortunately, you can get help through RX outreach but he makes too much to qualify. So, if there are people in need of help with certain medication, go on RX Outreach's website. If he qualified, he could get a 30 day supply for $45.

[goaded]

Last I heard, men are more likely to die with prostate cancer than of it. (Also, frequent masturbation reduces your risks of getting it, so take your health in your hand!)

[Slingblade1126]

I've heard that also. Prostate cancer is like the least aggressive type of cancer, not to say men haven't died from it and should get checked but the survival rate is extremely high. While breast cancer is extremely aggressive.

[gorydetails]

Look at the women who are READILY given hormone replacement as they hit menopause, but men have to basically fight tooth and nail for hormone replacement therapy.

[DarkLegacy]

Yes they do. Men and women have different problems, but feminism is supposed to be about equality so yes.

[exitseven]

Lets face it. Breasts are way more interesting that somebody's balls.

[SmokinAces2000]

You do realize that not only women get breast cancer right

[lottiebannotie]

Of course they do I wonder if women are more likely to be floating voters

[Dargil]

Nobody "deserves" healthcare. Do you "deserve" a free car or house? There is no right to healthcare, a car or a house.

[CateM]

Are men human beings, too?

[notwoke]

because white men are the modern day negro