Men's health: Screenings can help prevent negative health trends

With many diseases or illnesses, symptoms don’t occur until later stages. Often when they create much more serious health issues and are more difficult to treat.

That’s why it’s important to get regular screenings and physicals to catch chronic diseases before they occur.

In 2024, data reported by UCLA Health consistently showed that men are reluctant to seek medical care. Despite the fact they generally face higher mortality rates and shorter life expectancies than women across most causes of death.

Cleveland Clinic experts say men often ignore pain, delay care, or underreport symptoms. These behaviors can lead to missed screenings. Generational differences were also observed. Older men are less likely to get cancer screenings, and nearly half of Generation Z men lack a primary care doctor.

A survey of 1,000 U.S. men found that two in five Gen Z men lack a primary care provider. Many of these men say they've never, or are unsure if they have had blood pressure, cholesterol, or BMI checked.

“Men tend to do what I call ‘hide everything underneath the rug until something terrible happens’ but that's when they come in,” said Saju Mathew, MD, a Piedmont primary care physician in Atlanta. “As a primary care doctor, I do see a lot of young patients so I use that opportunity to tell them when they come in for a sinus infection or maybe chest pain, this would be a good time to get things started.”

Men 50 and older should get a physically annually. Younger men should have a physical every three to five years (or more), depending on your health history.

During these visits, doctors can check blood pressure and perform blood sugar tests and cholesterol tests. These screenings can help detect and prevent conditions like diabetes and heart disease. Heart disease remains the leading cause of death in men (and women).

“Patients should not have that misconception that if nothing is wrong, why am I going in for a physical?” Dr. Mathew said. “You're going in for a physical to make sure that you are not at an increased risk of diabetes, heart disease, etc. And the way we do that is to start off with measuring your height, your weight, your blood pressure, your pulse you can tell a lot from just a patient's vital signs.”

Various screenings can help detect diseases early. Below are recommendations for men from the United States Preventive Services Task Force:

• Lung cancer: Screening is recommended annually for certain adults ages 50 to 80. This includes people with a 20 pack-year smoking history and currently smoke or have quit within the past 15 years.
• Screening for colorectal cancer: A colonoscopy is recommended for ages adults 45 to 75 years every 10 years. Doctors and patients may consider a variety of factors in deciding on other testing options and frequencies.
• Prostate cancer screening: The USPSTF is currently in the process of updating its guidance. However, men ages 55 to 69 should discuss family history and risk factors with their doctor. Together, they can decide whether undergoing periodic prostate-specific antigen (PSA)-based screening is right for them. According to the American Cancer Society, 1 in 8 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer during their lifetime. A 2024 study suggests Black men should discuss baseline PSA testing with their clinicians in their early 40s. Its data indicates prostate cancer develops 3 to 9 years earlier in Black men compared with non-Black men.

Men may feel anxious or hesitant about certain exams. Dr. Mathew emphasizes that alternative testing options are often available.

“If your fear of coming into the doctor's office for prostate exams is that your doctor is going to do a rectal exam, at least let them check your blood because we can check the blood for your PSA,” he said. “And that is also the same thing I tell patients who are scared of colonoscopies. If your anxiety is keeping you away from the doctor, there are other options that we can discuss with you so that we still do some type of screening because some screening is better than no screening at all.”

Dr. Mathew also recommends annual mental health screenings, which can be initiated via questionnaires during a physical or doctor’s visit. Men may feel anxious or hesitant about certain exams. Dr. Mathew emphasizes that alternative testing options are often available. Having a primary care provider can help you determine what screenings are best for your long-term health.

Go to piedmont.org to schedule a visit with a physician.