How a Diagnosis Can Impact Your Mental Health and Ways to Manage It
- “Summer House” star Jesse Solomon, 30, recalls the impact testicular cancer diagnosis at 24 years old had on him. He says he suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and anxiety, affecting his mental health and the possibility his cancer would return (recurrence).
- Solomon was diagnosed in 2017 after experiencing slight pain in his testicles. He underwent surgery, but once the cancer returned, he received additional treatment that helped him reach remission. Now, five years removed from his last treatment, his anxieties have since subsided.
- Psychiatrist Dr. Samantha Boardman suggests that people who are working on their mental health practice positive psychology. Positive psychology focuses on encouraging patients to feel positive and finding what brings a sense of vitality to their lives.
- Testicular cancer begins in the cells that make sperm. Fortunately for men with this kind of cancer, “it can be cured, even if diagnosed at an advanced stage,” according to the National Cancer Institute.
- Testicular cancer often comes with stigma and shame for people diagnosed with the disease, sometimes preventing them from talking about it openly.
“Summer House” star Jesse Solomon, 28, was diagnosed with testicular cancer at the young age of 24, which took a toll on his mental health even after entering remission because he often feared it would return (recurrence), causing him post-traumatic stress (PTSD).
Post-traumatic stress disorder develops when “a person has experienced or witnessed a scary, shocking, terrifying, or dangerous event,” Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration SAMHSA says. Symptoms of PTSD appear in the form of flashbacks, trouble sleeping, or feeling isolated. A mental health professional can aid in managing these symptoms.
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“Summer House” airs on Bravo TV and features a group of people living in a mansion, often in a picturesque area. Solomon is one of the main characters in the show’s latest season.
Amid Solomon’s tenure on the show, he remains in remission. However, several years earlier, his life was upended when a “twinge of pain” in his testicles led to a cancer diagnosis.
“I thought, ‘yeah, it’s probably nothing,’ Solomon explained to Men’s Health. However, taking the cautionary route, he chose to go to the doctor, suspecting something like a sexually transmitted disease (STD) could be the culprit. Further testing revealed something more significant.
“The doctor called me immediately and said, ‘You got to come back.’ He was like, ‘Hey, so listen, you have cancer. We don’t know for sure if you have cancer, but you’re going to have to get your testicle removed, and then we’ll know for sure,” Solomon said.
Solomon underwent surgery, which he described as “super painful,” but the procedure was successful. Afterward, he was told he didn’t need chemotherapy and that he would need to undergo regular scans a few times a year.
His recurring scans were often uneventful until one scan revealed a concerning trend.
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“My blood markers came back elevated. [Solomon’s doctor] was like, ‘Yeah, you’re probably going to need either another surgery or radiation or chemo or a combination,” Solomon explained.
His cancer had spread to his lymph nodes. He was told at the time that by undergoing a combination therapy for treatment, his chances of survival were “pretty high.”
“During chemo, I was fully bald. By the end of it, I was losing my eyebrows,” Solomon said and added he initially felt self-conscious without hair but grew to accept it.
During chemo, Solomon said he often felt sick. The fly and pneumonia further complicated his treatment. However, there was light at the end of the tunnel because the treatment was working.
Now that he’s nearly five years into remission, Solomon says he’s built his confidence to combat the anxiety of recurrence.
“The fact that it did come back, you have post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) of it coming back again. Leading up to my five-year mark [last August], I was definitely getting uneasy about it, which you’ll see in the [Summer House],” Solomon explained.
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He now focuses much of his time and energy on cancer prevention and living a healthy lifestyle.
“The key to beating cancer is prevention,” he said.
“I was pretty into working out before cancer, but it was mostly just to look good. After cancer, I’m way more diligent about looking good and feeling good, but I take into account nutrition way more,” Solomon explained.
Expert Resources to Help Patients With Mental Health
- Changing the Culture: Medical Professionals Shouldn’t be Ashamed to Seek Mental Health Treatment
- Mental Health and Cancer — The Fight, Flight or Freeze Response
- Mental Health and Cancer: New Survey Shows Over a Third of Patients Aren’t Getting the Support They Need
- Do You Have a Question About Mental Health & Cancer– Strong In Cancer — A New Column From SurvivorNet with Dr. Marianna Strongin
- How Can Genetic Testing Help Determine the Right Form of Mental Health Treatment?
Managing Your Mental Health
Psychiatrist Dr. Samantha Boardman suggests that people who are working on their mental health practice positive psychology. Positive psychology focuses on encouraging patients to feel positive and finding what brings a sense of vitality to their lives.
WATCH: Managing your mental health amid a health challenge.
Dr. Boardman explains them as “pathways to embrace your everyday resilience.” In other words, these are tools people who may be struggling with mental health issues can embrace to help maintain a certain sense of positivity. And those positive feelings can go a long way when people are facing a health challenge like a cancer diagnosis.
According to Dr. Boardman, these three wellsprings of vitality are:
- Connecting. This involves how you’re connecting with others and having meaningful interactions. It consists in being a good listener and being engaged with the people around you who you care about.
- Contribution. How are you adding value to the people around you? Are you helping them in ways that feel meaningful to them? This entails contributing/engaging with others in a meaningful way.
- Feeling challenged. Being “positively challenged” could involve learning something new (perhaps by taking a new class or reading an interesting book) and expanding your mind somehow.
“Those are the cores of vitality and the core pathways to enhance your everyday resilience,” Dr. Boardman said.
Understanding Testicular Cancer
A testicular cancer diagnosis is rare, but it is the most common form of cancer diagnosed in young men.
Depending on the stage, the disease is considered highly treatable. Treatment options can include chemotherapy and radiation, but often, the first line of treatment is surgery to remove the testicle, which contains the cancerous cells.
Symptoms of testicular cancer can be subtle. Some people may even confuse the early symptoms, such as a small mass in their testicle, as an injury. But when these signs are dismissed, the cancer can grow and become worse.
Dr. Edwin Posadas, the medical director of the Urologic Oncology Program at Cedars-Sinai Cancer, previously told SurvivorNet that some men may even notice blood in their ejaculate as a result of testicular cancer. “This symptom is less common but always bad,” he said.
“It’s not uncommon to see men come in with masses on their scrotum and have inflammation of the scrotal wall; they develop pain as a result. A lump is the most common symptom of testicular cancer,” Dr. Posadas adds.
Men should regularly conduct self-exams of their testicles for anything unusual.
Testicular Cancer symptoms can include:
- Breast growth or soreness
- Early puberty in boys
- Low back pain (a potential symptom of advanced testicular cancer)
- Shortness of breath, chest pain, or a cough (a possible symptom of advanced testicular cancer)
- Belly pain (a possible symptom of advanced testicular cancer)
- Headaches or confusion (a possible symptom of advanced testicular cancer)
Living a Healthy Lifestyle
Solomon has reinvigorated his approach to diet and exercise after cancer.
The general recommendations for a healthy lifestyle are similar whether you have cancer or not.
Dr. Ken Miller, the Director of Outpatient Oncology at the University of Maryland Greenebaum Cancer Center, shared some guidelines for cancer survivors who are concerned about a recurrence with SurvivorNet:
- Exercise at least two hours a week, and walking counts.
- Eat a low-fat diet.
- Eat a colorful diet with lots of fruits and vegetables. The American Cancer Society recommends aiming for two to three cups of vibrant vegetables and fruits each day.
- Maintain a healthy weight. Studies have shown that being obese can increase your risk for several types of cancer.
“The more physically fit you are going through your cancer treatment, the fewer side effects you’ll have and the faster you’ll get back to your normal quality of life,” Dr. Sairah Ahmed told SurvivorNet.
Dr. Ahmed is an associate professor in the Department of Lymphoma/Myeloma, Division of Cancer Medicine, at MD Anderson Cancer Center.
Questions for Your Doctor
If you are facing testicular cancer and want to understand your diagnosis better, consider the following questions for your doctor.
- Has my testicular cancer spread beyond the testicle?
- What stage is my cancer in?
- What other tests should I expect as I continue learning more about the disease?
- What are my treatment options?
- What side effects should I expect with the recommended treatment?
Learn more about SurvivorNet's rigorous medical review process.
