Cancer is such an unforgiving disease. There are so many people who are afflicted by it, but just like everything else in life, even this heinous disease has levels of nuance. I have never had cancer, but I can imagine people who are diagnosed with the rarer forms often feel extremely isolated. Although cancers like breast cancer or prostate cancer are often talked about in a supportive way, rarer forms are almost treated like sideshow attractions. And if it happens to occur in a “taboo” part of the body, patients are met with an even stranger myriad of reactions.
Just ask Steven Hamill, who in 2019 got the shocking diagnosis of penile cancer, according to LAD Bible.
Hamill’s journey with the disease began with extreme pain in his penis.
His first drastic warning sign was the head of his penis reportedly swelling to four times its normal size. When he went to the general practitioner, he was originally diagnosed with balanitis, an infection that causes that area to be itchy, sore, and swollen. Being only 26 at the time, his doctor thought nothing more of it, prescribed him some steroid cream, and sent him on his way.
“I put steroid cream on it for two weeks solidly and there was no change,” Hamill told Metro. “By this point I was in so much pain It felt like someone was poking a needle into the end of my penis. The only way I could get a little bit of pain-free time was in the bathroom or I’d be rocking on the floor. Then, the smell started. I would describe this smell as death. It followed me round, it was awful and other people could smell it.”
Still, because of his age, doctors consistently ruled out the possibility of penile cancer.
It wasn’t until a month later when he passed out in his brother’s car and awoke in a pool of blood that doctors began taking it more seriously.
@stevenhamillstories It takes 1 minute to check.. don’t ignore your body ❤️ #fyp #menshealth #checkyourself #cancer #awareness ♬ original sound – StevenHamillStories
Shortly afterward, he was diagnosed with penile cancer while at The Christie NHS Foundation Trust in Manchester. As treatment for his condition, he was informed he had to have four inches of his 8-inch penis removed in a partial penectomy, along with his foreskin.
“When I put in the lads’ group chat about my cancer diagnosis, one of them changed my nickname to Stumpy and I’m still called this,” Hamill told Metro. “I was rather well endowed beforehand so [having] four inches in full removed dropped me down to around four inches. So [my penis] is still fully functional and working.”
He was so ‘functional’ in fact, that just three years after the surgery he had a child, LAD Bible reported.
@stevenhamillstories Embrace don’t regret ❤️ #body #confidence #change #Love #dating ♬ Calm Your Motivational Mind – Líricus Instrumental
“I was told I would never have kids because the surgery happened on my urethra, and I now have a four-year-old boy. Everything is still functional and I can still have kids,” he shared.
These days, Hamill spends time on social media spreading awareness about the rare disease with extremely open and honest candor.
Penile cancer is very rare in both the US and the UK. In America, only about 2,000 men are diagnosed with it yearly, according to the National Cancer Institute. In England, where Hamill is from, latest data says there were only 772 new cases from 2017 to 2021, per Cancer Research UK.
“If anything doesn’t feel right, don’t be embarrassed and see if it goes away,” Hamill urged in his interview with Metro. “Reach out, even if it’s to me online, and I could guide you, but 100% reach out and don’t leave it too late.”
