Global Action on Men's Health

We are delighted to welcome the World Federation of Public Health Associations as our latest member organisation. WFPHA is a hugely respected and influential voice in public health and we look forward to working with them on a wide range of issues, including making the case for global gender-neutral HPV vaccination.

The October edition of Global Men's Health News, GAMH's monthly ebulletin, has just been published. You can read it here: https://lnkd.in/dMVZpR3v. Anyone can take out a free subscription (details are at the end of the ebulletin). It's well worth a look!

The October edition of GAMH's Global Men's Health News contains an important editorial on male (in)fertility by Tim Shand and Conor Evoy. This is an edited version:   Sperm counts have fallen by 52% globally since 1971, with male infertility now contributing to around 50% of infertility in couples. While the underlying cause of declining male fertility remains to be fully understood, exposure to endocrine disrupting chemicals in industrialised regions is known to significantly negatively impact male reproductive functioning, and infertility is also associated with a range of physical health conditions in men, including cardiovascular disease. Despite this global challenge, male infertility is neglected in policy and service provision on a global scale, as outlined in Out of Focus (https://lnkd.in/ec7-H2kG), GAMH’s recent report on gaps in provision for men in sexual and reproductive health (SRH) policy. Only 16% of analysed policies for this report refer to male fertility, with policy more likely to focus implicitly or explicitly on women’s fertility. There is no current body of global policy or frameworks with dedicated attention to addressing male or couple infertility. Male infertility is associated with psychological challenges for men and their partners, and there is currently inadequate and poor-quality infertility treatment, services, support and information tailored to men or couples. Where fertility services do exist, they typically only serve women. In the USA, there are just 197 male infertility specialists to serve a national population of 162 million men and boys, and male infertility examinations in this context are not conducted in 25% of couple infertility cases, despite global consensus on the importance of examining both partners. In the absence of appropriate services, many men turn to the private sector to diagnose or treat their infertility. The high costs associated with private sector health care create a two-tier system, where men with the financial resources can access fertility care and those without cannot. Meanwhile, the recent global emergence of ‘sperm tech’ providers – companies offering a variety of male fertility services, ranging from mail order sperm tests and sperm storage to semen analysis visualisation and tailored ‘fertility plans’ – in response to insufficient mainstream treatment options for men poses numerous health and ethics challenges, beyond affordability. The accuracy of home test results is considered to be less reliable than that of those conducted in laboratories and evidence of the effectiveness of many ‘sperm quality improvement’ approaches promoted by private providers is contested. While bolstered regulation and oversight of these providers is a crucial first step, demand for their services will not diminish until provision of comprehensive, accessible and affordable fertility services are secured for men and couples everywhere.

Global Action on Men's Health and NOMAN is an Island: Race to End HPV have come together to call for global gender-neutral HPV vaccination by 2030. Vaccinating both boys and girls protects everyone from HPV infections and the cancers they cause. GAMH and NOMAN are hosting a webinar on 31 October 2024 at 14.00 (UK time) to share more information about this initiative. The meeting will be chaired by David Winterflood, CEO of NOMAN is an Island: Race to End HPV. GAMH Director Peter Baker will present the case for global gender-neutral HPV vaccination and he will be followed by comments from Dr BRICE EDZOA ESSOMBA, Regional Coordinator for the Expanded Immunization Program in Cameroon, and Salome Meyer, Chairperson, Cancer Alliance (South Africa). Register for the webinar here: https://lnkd.in/eqAeeMAG (or use the QR code below) #endHPVglobal #HPV #cancer #menshealth https://lnkd.in/eKbzAChY

Our call for global gender-neutral HPV vaccination was launched yesterday at the World Cancer Congress in Geneva. It's a joint initiative led by GAMH and NOMAN is an Island: Race to End HPV and supported by 22 organisations, three of which (World Federation of Public Health Associations, European Cancer Organisation and MENA Coalition for HPV Elimination) were represented by speakers at the launch meeting. If you weren't there, a video of the meeting is available here: https://lnkd.in/eB3qDb7p. For more information about the call to action, and to access our new Boys, Men and HPV report, visit https://lnkd.in/eKbzAChY #HPV #cancer #menshealth #womenshealth #endhpvglobal

Today, 19 September, GAMH and NOMAN is an Island: Race to End HPV are launching a new Call for global gender-neutral HPV vaccination. The call is supported by over 20 leading organisations, including the World Federation of Public Health Associations, the European Cancer Organisation, the European Association of Urology, Cancer Alliance (South Africa), and the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Coalition for HPV Elimination. Several GAMH member organisations – Movember, Men’s Foundation (South Africa) and Outreach Scout Foundation (Malawi) – are also supporting the Call.   The case for vaccinating young people – whatever their sex or gender – is clear. HPV can cause a wide range of cancers – cervical, anal, penile, throat and others – with an estimated 180,000 new cases in men worldwide each year. In some countries, over 30% (and in the USA, 42%) of all the HPV-related cancer cases are in men. While gender-neutral HPV vaccination has been introduced in about 70 countries, these are mostly high-income countries. Most middle- and low-income countries either have no HPV vaccination programme or vaccinate only girls. Also, most countries with vaccination programmes have uptake levels below 90%, the level at which the community as a whole is protected against HPV infection.   We are therefore calling for the World Health Organisation and other international public health bodies, as well as national governments, to commit to the introduction of global gender-neutral HPV vaccination with a target vaccine uptake of 90% by 2030.   The Call to Action is being launched at the World Cancer Congress in Geneva. The case for action report is available here (https://lnkd.in/eKM_tAgp) and more information about the initiative is available at a new, dedicated website (https://lnkd.in/eKbzAChY).   #menshealth #HPV #cancer

📅 Boys, Men, and HPV: A Call for Global Gender-Neutral HPV Vaccination Join us at the World Cancer Congress #WCC2024 for a session assembling leading experts for a discussion on HPV prevention and the opportunity to accelerate the elimination of all HPV cancers. We have the means to protect everyone, regardless of sex or gender, from HPV infections and the cancers they cause. Achieving this requires a more ambitious, ethical, and equitable approach to HPV vaccination at global and national levels. 📍 19 September – 09:40 CEST, World Cancer Congress, Room 8 Global Action on Men's Health NOMAN is an Island: Race to End HPV #publichealth #HPV #EndHPVGlobal #menshealth #cancer

Our latest report, Out of Focus: the representation of men in regional and global sexual and reproductive health policy, is now out. https://lnkd.in/ec7-H2kG. It provides the robust evidence that is needed to push men’s (and women’s) sexual and reproductive health (SRH) policy to the next level. Good SRH is important to everyone. But, in many respects, men are not doing well. They are more likely than women to acquire sexually transmitted infections such as syphilis and gonorrhoea or to be infected by HIV. Sperm counts are falling globally and male sexual dysfunctions, such as erectile dysfunction, are becoming more prevalent. Sexual violence against men and boys, while much less common than sexual violence against women and girls, is a largely unrecognised problem. Men are too often reluctant users of SRH services partly because of gender norms that inhibit help-seeking but also because services are not geared towards their needs. Men’s and women’s SRH are, of course, inextricably linked. Better outcomes for men would lead to better outcomes for women, and vice versa. Greater involvement of men in contraception and family planning and the elimination of gender-based violence would contribute significantly to greater gender equality. Certainly, the SRH of women and girls needs greater attention in policy and practice. But men’s SRH is currently largely absent from it. This report finds that only one in six (16%) of the policies produced by many of the leading organisations in global health addressed men’s SRH needs. Where men are mentioned, this is often in negative terms. Key sub-groups of men are overlooked. While there are some good stand-alone examples of policy aimed at men, this is nowhere near being mainstreamed. Policymakers must increase the focus on men’s SRH, particularly men’s own SRH needs, and in a more positive way. More sex-disaggregated data is needed. Largely neglected issues, such as male infertility, male sexual dysfunctions and male reproductive cancers, must be addressed. The SRH needs of men who have sex with men should no longer be viewed solely through the lens of HIV and sexually transmitted infections. Male sexual pleasure can no longer be a taboo subject. Global Action on Men’s Health will be making the case for a truly gendered approach to SRH programme, practice, and policy development which includes a wide range of male-targeted initiatives alongside greater attention to the needs of women and girls. #menshealth #womenshealth

We have two exciting events coming up this month. First, tomorrow (4 September) is our World Sexual Health Day webinar on the representation of men in sexual and reproductive health policy at the regional and global levels. The webinar starts on 4 September at 11.30 EDT / 16.30 BST / 17.30 CEST and will last 60 minutes. Register in advance here https://lnkd.in/dktacxJb for your personal Zoom login details. And, if you're planning to be at the World Cancer Congress in Geneva, please join us on 19 September (at 09.40 CEST, Room 8) for the launch of a new call for global gender-neutral HPV vaccination. We are working in partnership with NOMAN is an Island: Race to End HPV and the two organisations will be presenting a report that makes the case for a policy re-think at the global level. #EndHPVGlobal #HPV #cancer #publichealth #HPV #menshealth #womenshealth

On World Sexual Health Day (4 September), Global Action on Men's Health will be launching a major new report on how men's sexual and reproductive health is treated in global health policy. We will be calling for an approach to policy that takes full account of all men's sexual and reproductive health needs. You are warmly invited to a webinar at which the report's authors, Tim Shand and Conor Evoy from ShandClark Consulting, will present their findings. Two experts - Dr Morna Cornell from University of Cape Town and Dominick Shattuck, PhD from The Johns Hopkins University - will then comment on the report and its implications. Dr Elna Rudolph - Sexologist, President of the World Association for Sexual Health, will introduce World Sexual Health Day and reflect on the relevance of the report. The presentations will be followed by a Q&As and an open discussion. The webinar starts on 4 September at 11.30 EDT / 16.30 BST / 17.30 CEST. It will be chaired by GAMH's chair, Derek M. Griffith, Ph.D., and will last 60 minutes. Register in advance here: https://lnkd.in/dktacxJb for your personal Zoom login details. If you are unable to attend the live event, there will be a recording available that will be sent via link when you register in the usual way https://lnkd.in/dktacxJb. Our review of how men are treated in sexual and reproductive policy follows two previous investigations of policies on men and cancer https://lnkd.in/eWjg4YPh and men and mental health https://lnkd.in/eSsrwhqu. All our research is used to support advocacy work to make sure that men receive the policy attention they need and deserve. We look forward to seeing you at the webinar.