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Penile cancer art exhibition moves to Bradford
The exhibition, which is open to the public, will run from Monday 22 July at 10am to Wednesday 24 July at 3pm in the Great Hall of the Richmond Building at Bradford University. At 1pm on Tuesday, one of the main featured artists, John D Edwards, will give a talk about his artwork and experiences.
Penile cancer is a rare but potentially devastating condition. During an 18-month study to create a health information resource on the award-winning www.healthtalkonline.org website, Leeds Metropolitan University researchers, Dr Peter Branney and Karl Witty at the Centre for Men's Health, met creative and inspiring men from across the UK.
The exhibition was set up in January this year, initially based at the Rose Bowl in Leeds before running for two weeks at the Bexley Wing of St James's Hospital. It allows the public to explore the patients' artwork and quotes about their experiences of penile cancer taken from the website.
Dr Branney commented: "A lot of men have never heard of penile cancer and some are shocked to learn that the penis can get cancer. The UK is world-leading in the treatment of penile cancer, yet our research shows the symptoms are regularly mistaken for a sexually transmitted disease, which delays treatment. If we talk about penile cancer more widely, then men might be diagnosed quicker and be better equipped to cope with both the physical and emotional impact of the condition.
"One of the main findings from the research was that, although you'd think no-one would want to mention penile cancer, the men who were diagnosed felt it was easier to cope with when it was spoken about. Being open and honest and having a laugh enabled other people to offer help and reduce embarrassment. Particularly for those men who need reconstructive surgery, sharing the situation with family and friends boosted confidence and self-esteem and this was massively valued in the overall recovery process."