09/27/2026
**AND PEOPLE WONDER WHY SO MANY MEN DON'T REALIZE THEY CAN GET BREAST CANCER.**
Before anyone misunderstands this post, I have absolutely nothing against this fire department or what they're doing. I think it's fantastic that they're raising awareness and showing support for people fighting breast cancer.
But take a good look at the side of that fire truck.
**"FIGHT LIKE A GIRL."**
And therein lies a problem that I don't think enough people realize exists.
For decades, breast cancer awareness has been almost exclusively directed toward women.
Pink ribbons. Pink fire trucks. Women's campaigns. Women's stories. Women's health.
And understandably so, considering the overwhelming majority of breast cancer diagnoses involve women.
But somewhere along the way, we've unintentionally ingrained something into the minds of millions of men.
**Breast cancer is a woman's disease. Men don't get it.**
And I'm living proof of what happens when you believe that.
I first noticed something unusual in my chest back in December.
A lump.
Did I immediately book an appointment with my doctor?
Nope.
I figured it was probably nothing.
After all, I'm a man. Breast cancer wasn't even a possibility that crossed my mind.
So I ignored it.
It wasn't until March, when that lump had grown to roughly twice its original size, that I finally went to see my doctor.
And eventually, I heard the words I never imagined I'd hear.
**You have breast cancer.**
I've spent just shy of 18 years driving trucks. I know what to do when something goes wrong with my equipment. I know what warning signs to watch for and what happens when you ignore them.
Yet when something went wrong with my own body, I didn't even realize I was driving around with a warning light on.
Because nobody had ever taught me that men could get breast cancer.
Think about that for a moment.
**How many men are walking around right now with a lump in their chest, completely unaware that it could be cancer?**
I saw a figure of 244 Canadian men diagnosed with breast cancer last year.
It's rare. Nobody is disputing that.
But here's the question that bothers me.
How many others weren't diagnosed because they dismissed the warning signs, just like I did?
How many waited months because they genuinely believed breast cancer was something only women needed to worry about?
And how many might have gone to their doctor sooner if they'd simply known it was possible?
I don't want less awareness for women.
**I want more awareness for EVERYONE.**
I want men to see a breast cancer awareness campaign and understand that it applies to them too.
Because that pink ribbon represents my cancer just as much as it represents a woman's.
And gentlemen, if you notice a lump, changes around your ni**le, unusual discharge or anything else that doesn't seem right, please get it checked.
Don't make the same assumption I did.
Don't wait three months because you think it couldn't possibly happen to you.
I'm not suggesting that every unusual lump is cancer. I'm saying that you deserve to know when something needs medical attention.
**Breast cancer doesn't check your gender before deciding to show up.**
And breast cancer awareness shouldn't leave anyone believing they're immune to it.
I can't go back and change what I didn't know in December.
But if sharing my story gets even one man to recognize a warning sign and make that doctor's appointment instead of ignoring it....
Then at least something good will have come from those three months I spent not knowing what was growing inside my chest.
