Urology Awareness Month
Reviewed by our clinical team
Each September The Urology Foundation (TUF) runs Urology Awareness Month to help raise awareness of urological disease and raise money for important research and training for medical professionals on these conditions.
In 2020 we decided to get involved and help support TUF throughout the month of September. Often people are embarrassed to talk about urological conditions, but with as many as 1 in 2 of us being affected by a urological condition in our lives, there is nothing to be ashamed of. We want to help spread awareness and encourage people to start talking about these conditions.
What is urology?
Urology is the study of the female urinary system and male genitourinary tract. Put simply these are the parts of the body that produce, store and get rid of urine, as well as the parts involved in sexual function for men. So urology is the study of the kidneys, bladder, ureters, urethra, prostate, penis and testicles.
What is urological disease?
Urological disease is the umbrella term given to the group of conditions that affect the female urinary system and male genitourinary tract. They can be very common conditions such as cystitis or erectile dysfunction (ED). However, they can also be very serious conditions, this is why it’s so important to talk about any concerns you might have about your urological health.
Some of the most well-known urological conditions include prostate cancer (the most commonly diagnosed cancer in men in the UK), kidney stones, incontinence and UTIs. But urological conditions also include bladder, penile, kidney and testicular cancers, and kidney failure, phimosis (foreskin problems), male infertility amongst others.
What does TUF do?
TUF is the only charity in the UK and Ireland who work to fight against all urological diseases. While raising awareness and breaking the stigma that can be so often associated with these conditions is a priority for TUF, much of their funding also goes into research and training. Their work falls into 3 areas – prevent, treat, cure.
- Prevent – one of the key ideas to help reduce the number of people experiencing urological disease is to stop them all together. TUF uses their platforms to spread awareness and get people talking about urological disease, hopefully encouraging people to get early diagnosis. The sooner you see a doctor, the quicker you can get treatment if needed.
- Treat – TUF wants medical professionals to have the best training and equipment possible to treat urological conditions. This leads to great improvements in the treatment being offered to patients.
- Cure – TUF invests in research in new ways to treat and cure urological disease, working with some of the best scientists and making sure underfunded areas also get support.
Find out more about what TUF do.
What we’re doing to support TUF
Throughout the month of September we’ll be supporting TUF on social media, sharing the interesting information and advice they have about these conditions. We’ll also be sharing some of our doctor’s advice on certain urological conditions, in a bid to help break down some of the barriers which stop people seeking treatment.
Follow TUF on Twitter and Facebook, as well as Online Doctor on Twitter and Facebook, if you’ve not done so already! You’ll be able to keep in touch with the latest news and activity in September and into the future.
Online Doctor and urological conditions
At Online Doctor we can provide support and advice for ED and cystitis, which are 2 urological conditions which TUF also campaigns for. You can find out more about these conditions by visiting either our erectile dysfunction or cystitis clinics today.
Visit the TUF website to find out more about their fantastic fundraising and the research projects they’re involved in and have worked on in the past.
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