Exploding the myth of male menopause

Thursday, 12 February 2009

The male menopause does not exist, an internationally prominent medical researcher will tell a free public lecture at the University of Adelaide next week.

Epidemiologist Dr John McKinlay, Senior Vice President of New England Research Institutes in the US, is the guest speaker at two public lectures held by the University's Freemason's Foundation Centre for Men's Health on 16 and 17 February.

Dr McKinlay says male menopause or male "andropause", as it's sometimes called, is an "invented syndrome" and "part of the medicalisation of normal ageing".

"There is no support from any of the major international endocrinology studies for a male menopause," he says. "Worldwide, male ageing is generating public interest and also, incidentally, a lucrative market. Pharmaceutical involvement is producing new treatments - for example testosterone replacement - but these treatments are drugs in search of a disease."

Dr McKinlay says there are serious ethical and medical issues to be considered. "Giving men extra testosterone willy-nilly may elevate their risk of prostate cancer," he says.

This lecture on Monday 16 February will be followed by a public forum to discuss a national men's health policy. A second public lecture will be presented by Dr McKinlay on Tuesday 17 February on the fallacies around race/ethnic disparities in disease rates.

Dr McKinlay was the Founding Director and now Senior Vice President and Chief Scientist of the independent research organisation, New England Research Institutes. This follows a distinguished academic and research career at Boston University and Harvard Medical School.

The Freemason's Foundation Centre for Men's Health is holding two public events as follows:

• Monday 16 February, 4-7pm, Adelaide Masonic Centre, 254 North Tce: 'Is there a male menopause?' followed by a public forum to discuss a national men's health policy, 'Speaking up about men's health';

• Tuesday 17 February, 3.30-5.30pm, Radford Auditorium, Art Gallery of SA: 'Race/ethnic disparities in disease rates - the fallacy of misplaced concreteness'. RSVP to both events to anne.hayes@adelaide.edu.au

Further information on the Freemason's Foundation Centre for Men's Health and these events can be found at http://www.adelaide.edu.au/menshealth/

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