GAA players use VR game to learn about their testicles

Testicular cancer is one of the most common among 15-44 year olds, yet many are unfamiliar with the disease and how easily they can detect it. Men also tend to ignore testicular symptoms like pain, lumps, and bumps until the symptoms become unbearable, mainly due to embarrassment and the fear of a potential cancer diagnosis.

Mohamad Saab, a senior lecturer and director of graduate studies at UCC’s School of Nursing and Midwifery, who led the Enhancing Men's Awareness of Testicular Diseases (E-MAT) study, said the idea of using VR arose from his earlier PhD research. 

During that study, men said rather than traditional leaflets, they preferred health promotion materials that are brief, visually stimulating, and using simple language. Dr Saab said: 

Our research found that men rarely checked their testicles and did not know what to look for while doing so.

“One man said that checking his testicles felt like trying to find ‘a lump in a bag of lumps’." 

He said men are interested in learning more about testicular diseases but want "something engaging, short snappy". 

He also said men who play field games like hurling are at higher risk for testicular trauma and diseases.

“When struck, a sliotar can reach a speed of 160km/h which poses significant injury risks,” he said. “That’s why we chose GAA players."

He said funding from the Health Research Board helped them test the VR game with headsets in GAA clubs with players before and after matches. 

"We went to their clubs with the headsets and did the VR game with them before and after matches.” 

The participants wore a VR headset and, using two hand controllers, took part in a three-level 10-minute interactive VR game set in a virtual apartment.

Level one used walnuts to familiarise the player with the normal look and feel of the testicles and the most common symptoms.

The game went on to use a 3D model of a testicle to explain different testicular structures and diseases, and also explained that testicles are unique, like a fingerprint, to underline the importance of knowing what is normal for each individual.

The game then invited participants to identify changes like pain, swelling and lumps in testicles, to learn about the links of symptoms to testicular diseases, and to learn the techniques to perform a testicular self-exam.

The trial found that 95% of participants reported an increase in their knowledge of testicular diseases and an improvement in their ability to perform a testicular self-examination, proving that VR has the potential to engage hard-to-reach age groups.

Dr Saab said while the numbers involved in the trial were small, it is a first step towards securing more funding to deliver and test the E-MAT campaign nationally and make it freely available. He will present his findings at a men’s health symposium at UCC on Friday.