The penis is a sacred organ for plenty of blokes and while we all make loads of jokes about our body, this story is no laughing matter.
Dale Clarke has recently received the devastating news from his doctor that the cancer growing inside his penis has become terminal.
Advert
He's done virtually everything to prevent this from happening, including five operations, nine rounds of radiotherapy and two rounds of chemotherapy, but the 25-year-old has been told doctors can't do anything more to save his life.
"It's absolutely destroyed me as a person. I struggle to walk to the toilet and my penis has no use other than to try and urinate from it," he says.
"It has no feeling. The cancer is busy eating away around it, so I will probably lose it altogether soon.
"The doctors said I was one of the youngest people they had treated with it and it was one of the most aggressive forms they had seen."
Dale and his fiancée Paige have a six-year-old son and a baby on the way.
The news that Dale might not be around for much longer has crushed the young family, but they're trying to crack on as best as possible and have a positive attitude towards the situation.
The joiner was first confronted by the cancer growing inside him when he went to the doctor with the belief he was suffering from an infection and was struggling to go to the bathroom.
Advert
He says the cancer, at the start, was about the size of a grain of rice and in just three weeks it grew to a grape.
"The pain was unbelievable. It was that bad that I would try not to go to the toilet," he says.
"I was going about once a day and was crying with the pain. It was like the worst kind of burning. I remember when they phoned me to confirm it was cancer, I couldn't say anything."
Advert
WATCH: This heartwarming moment neighbours reveal they renovated a family home
To make matters worse, Dale now struggles to walk after doctors were required to remove a bunch of lymph nodes around his groin area that had cancerous cells developing. As a result, Paige is now his carer and ensures he doesn't struggle with anything.
He says: "She's been incredible. She works as a carer and it's like she's working two jobs because she's having to look after me.
"I need somebody to help me all of the time because of my lack of mobility."
Paige adds: "It was very tough on both of us but we tried to carry on as normal."
She says Dale's diagnosis has brought them closer together as they need to work as a team as well as lovers.
Advert
They're now focusing their time on their family, with Dale hoping to still be alive when his daughter is due around July. Dale's family have started a fundraising page to help the young couple get through the next few months.
There are more than 600 cases of penis cancer in the UK alone every year and Dale wants other blokes to be able to recognise the warning signs to ensure people can get on top of it early.
Those symptoms include a growth, rash, swelling or ulcer on the penis, changes in the colour of the penis, skin thickening, blood coming from anywhere around the organ or unexplained pain.
Featured Image Credit: Caters/MecuryTopics: Feels, Community, Cancer