The penis is a funny thing.   Dangling between the legs like some kind of primitive war club.   Someone who loses any part of themselves has to find ways to adjust, and it must be hard.  I'd argue that alongside the physical, tangible parts of ourselves, like our arms, limbs, doodle - cancer can extract important spiritual pieces as well - things like sense-of-place, hope, connectedness.   Living without a former piece of yourself .. pretty hard thing to face.   But the penis - it's especially weird, I reckon.   We as a society almost NEVER talk about our penises.  I feel already that I've said penis maybe 5 times too many in this post.  Penis.  Penis.  Penis.   But we almost NEVER talk about them on a day-to-day level.   YET .. at a big picture society level, we obsessively acknowledge them - we design cars and buildings with unconscious or subconscious phallic influence, when we talk to a lady we look from her eyes to her mouth to her boobs, when we talk to a man we look from his face to his tackle-box and back.  When we stand at a urinal we take a moment to focus our gaze intently FORWARD because we don't want to accidentally glance sideways and look at someone else's dick.   Penises are supremely weird and powerful things.  (To be fair, so also is the amazing, mystical Vagina).   To have lost yours ... in my mind ... it's like a back-handed gift from God, mate.   Consider all the effort, time, energy, lies and misdirection, games and falsehoods that orbit around the ole pork sausage.  If I showed you a photo of two piles of mashed potato and a pork sausage down the middle, you'd have to struggle not to roll your eyes (or supress an adolescent giggle).   I think being without a penis, it's a chance to redefine a new, monastic you.     I know that might read as cold comfort, but I genuinely believe that in some ways being without a penis would actually be a liberating thing.  Mine has led me bad places most of my life.  In fact, my tonsil cancer was HPV+, and I think that the ultimate root cause (pun intended) might have been from .. well, as ACDC said it .. 'dirty deeds done dirt cheep'   I'm sorry for your loss, I truly sympathise.  It's good you're still alive.  I hope that being penis-less isn't as bad and as hard as I imagine it probably would be.  And I hope that, in some ways, there are unexpected positives.   My personal favourite penis-less character in popular fiction is that bald chap in Game of Thrones, I can't remember exactly, his name is something like Varys, the Master of Whispers (a kinda royal spy-master).  Very conniving but ultimately altruistic type of person.  Actually come to think of it, he may also have echoed that sentiment that being without a penis has helped him to engage the world in ways he never would have discovered otherwise.   Anyway sorry for randomly remarking on your life, best of luck, be well. ... View more

Another Survivor Shout-Out (from Oklahoma, USA)   The disase really stinks. But I am now 19 years and 3 months cancer free. I was stage 2+ tonsil cancer.  I won't lie. It hasn't been easy. But I'm still going strong, feeling good, just dealing with long-term effects of the radiation.  I just retired at age 64 and I'm enjoying my life with my best friend of 43 years, our 3 kids and 9 grandkids and still doing ministry (I was a pastor for 34 years). If I can help encourage anyone, don't hesitate to reach out. Blessings friends!  ... View more