+
Family

Ben Stiller wants you to go to the doctor. It might save your life, as it did his.

On Tuesday, Ben Stiller appeared on "The Howard Stern Show," where the actor revealed that two years ago, he was diagnosed with aggressive prostate cancer.

Soon after his Howard Stern appearance, the "Zoolander" star published a blog post containing more of the story of his diagnosis, in which he recalls what it was like to hear the word "cancer" in a doctor's office.

He describes it as feeling very much like a scene from a movie:


"As my new, world-altering doctor spoke about cell cores and Gleason scores, probabilities of survival, incontinence and impotence, why surgery would be good and what kind would make the most sense, his voice literally faded out like every movie or TV show about a guy being told he had cancer ... a classic Walter White moment, except I was me, and no one was filming anything at all."

Today, Stiller is cancer-free, and he's using his story to call on more men to stay on top of their health.

Photo by Lisa Maree Williams/Getty Images.

Prostate cancer is the second-leading cause of cancer death in men. If detected, however, the cure rate is nearly 100%, according to the Prostate Cancer Foundation.

Detecting prostate cancer is a matter of simple screenings performed by your doctor, but therein lies the problem.

Men don't go to the doctor nearly as often as they should.

A survey from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that men were half as likely as women to go to the doctor over a two-year period. The study also found that men were more than twice as likely to admit to never visiting a doctor in their entire adult life — meaning that prostate cancer, as well as a host of other medical issues like heart disease and diabetes, don't even have the chance to be detected and addressed.

There are many reasons men report avoiding their doctors, but among them are fear of finding out what might be wrong and a fear of prostate screenings, which can involve — let's face it — a finger up your butt.

There are a lot of organizations working to encourage men to see their doctors more regularly.

The "Movember" movement, which raises awareness for men's health, is one of these groups, but there are many prostate cancer advocacy groups and doctors that encourage men (especially age 40 and over) to get checked.

An Australian rugby team painted a mustache on their plane in support of Movember. Photo by William West/AFP/Getty Images.

In his blog post, Stiller credits the PSA blood test with saving his life.

The prostate-specific antigen test is still controversial, as it doesn't actually diagnose cancer but simply lets doctors know if a further biopsy might be needed.

It might not be the best option for everyone, but as Stiller writes, the important thing is knowing your options and having as much information as possible so you can make the decision that's right for you:

"I count my blessings that I had a doctor who presented me with these options. After I chose to take the test, he directed me to doctors who worked at centers of excellence in this field to determine the next steps. This is a complicated issue, and an evolving one. But in this imperfect world, I believe the best way to determine a course of action for the most treatable, yet deadly cancer, is to detect it early."

It's important for Stiller to speak out about his diagnosis and treatment, as his message could save someone else's life.

Every 19 minutes in America, a man dies of prostate cancer. That number can be reduced if more men follow Stiller's lead and go to their doctors regularly, learn their options, and get regular screenings.

For more information about prostate cancer, visit the Prostate Cancer Foundation.

Joy

Sorry, Labradors. After 31 years, America has a new favorite dog.

The American Kennel Club has crowned a new favorite.

via Pixabay

A sad-looking Labrador Retriever

The sweet-faced, loveable Labrador Retriever is no longer America’s favorite dog breed. The breed best known for having a heart of gold has been replaced by the smaller, more urban-friendly French Bulldog.

According to the American Kennel Club, for the past 31 years, the Labrador Retriever was America’s favorite dog, but it was eclipsed in 2022 by the Frenchie. The rankings are based on nearly 716,500 dogs newly registered in 2022, of which about 1 in 7 were Frenchies. Around 108,000 French Bulldogs were recorded in the U.S. in 2022, surpassing Labrador Retrievers by over 21,000.

Keep ReadingShow less
via Google and Freepik

Google's new personal information removal submission page.

In the internet era, the idea of personal privacy is all but a myth. With a few keystrokes just about anyone can get your home address, phone number, email, age and the names of your family members. The fact that this information is readily available puts us all in the dangerous position of being the victim of fraud, stalking and violence.

What makes the situation even worse is that our information was put online without any of our consent.

The good news is that Google just made a big change that gives us all a little more control over our personal information. On April 27, the company announced it will allow anyone to request removals of their personal information from its Search feature.

“Open access to information is a key goal of Search, but so is empowering people with the tools they need to protect themselves and keep their sensitive, personally identifiable information private. That’s why we’re updating our policies to help people take more control of their online presence in Search,” Michelle Chang, Google’s Global Policy Lead for Search, announced on the company’s blog.

Keep ReadingShow less
Health

Relationship expert shares her advice on how to 'stop an argument in its tracks'

She has the perfect question to ask once your partner gets defensive.

Therapist Lauren Consul has one trick to stop arguments before they begin.

Arguments start to take off when one partner begins to get defensive. So, therapist Lauren Consul shared her relationship-saving tip to "stop an argument in its tracks" when one partner goes into self-preservation mode.

Lauren Consul is a couples and sex therapist who’s developed a following of nearly 160,000 people on TikTok and has received over 5.4 million likes. She is an infidelity expert and hosts retreats to help people "survive and thrive" after one partner has strayed.

Keep ReadingShow less
Joy

An 8-year-old snuck his handwritten book onto a library shelf. Now it has a 56-person waiting list.

Dillon Helbig's 81-page graphic novel— written by "Dillon His Self"—captured the hearts of his local librarians and their patrons.

Dillon Helbig's 81-page graphic novel captured the hearts of his local librarians.

Writing a book is no easy task, even for adult professional writers. Many would-be authors dream of a day when their work can be found on library shelves, unsure if it will ever come.

But for 8-year-old Dillon Helbig, that day has already arrived—in truly unconventional fashion—thanks to his own determination to make it happen.

Dillon wrote his 81-page graphic novel, "The Adventures of Dillon Helbig's Crismis" (written by "Dillon His Self") in a hardcover journal with colored pencils over the course of a few days. He even put a label on the back of the book that reads "Made in Idho" [sic] and put an illustrated spine label on it as well. Then, without telling anyone, he brought it to his local library in Boise, Idaho, and slipped it in among the books in the children's section.

Keep ReadingShow less

Becca Moore and Raul Torres having margaritas.

Becca Moore is a popular TikToker with over 800,000 followers who's known for her funny, laid-back takes on dating. Like any influencer-type she was at the Coachella music and arts festival in Indio, California recently. While she was at Coachella, she was robbed of her phone, rental car keys and wallet.

“I went to Coachella this weekend and I thought this guy was kinda hitting on me but then he just robbed me,” Becca says at the beginning of her three-minute TikTok video with over 3 million views. After the festival, she was left with no ride, money, or means to get in contact with friends and family. She was stranded in the desert.

Becca’s friend’s hotel called her an Uber so she could get to a local store to buy a new phone. The driver she was incredibly lucky to be connected with was a lot more than a guy with a car in a time of need, he was a guardian angel named Raul Torres from Fresno, California, six hours north of Indio.

Keep ReadingShow less
Joy

44 years ago he became her protector after a terrible act. Today, they've been reunited in love.

Betsy and Irv are finally getting the happy ending they deserve. Together.

It’s pretty safe to say that everyone loves a good love story.

There’s a whole genre of music and movies dedicated to the idea of someone being swept off of their feet after circumstances tried to keep them from their true love. Romance novels could single handedly keep public libraries and bookstores afloat. Everyone loves "love" and the story of Betsy and Irv just takes the cake. Betsy Sailor attended Penn State University as a business major, which was almost unheard of in 1978 and Irv Pankey attended the university while playing football. The pair’s paths never crossed, until an unfortunate incident bonded the two forever.

Keep ReadingShow less