Cardiff City fan with prostate cancer leads campaign for incontinence bins in Welsh stadium toilets

A Cardiff City fan with stage 4 prostate cancer has called for Welsh football grounds to support men living with incontinence by providing sanitary bins in stadium toilets.

57-year old Mark Lewis is leading the national campaign, Back in the Game, after a new study found that incontinence is causing men to miss live matches because of a lack of access to incontinence bins.

Mark’s story will be told in an eight-minute film by BBC Morning Live to be broadcast on BBC1 later today.

It will be introduced by BBC presenter Kym Marsh, who’s father died of prostate cancer in early 2024.

Dignity

The programme airs following the recent news that Manchester United has signed up to be the Premier League’s first Gold BOG STANDARD club.

The initiative, led by Prostate Cancer UK and Caerphilly-based phs Group, encourages organisations to provide washroom facilities that allow men to dispose with dignity.

This means Old Trafford’s washrooms are fully kitted out with incontinence bins, have male incontinence products on offer, and actively raise awareness of incontinence and prostate cancer.

But so far no Welsh clubs have signed up for the scheme.

In Wales, 2,571 men were diagnosed with prostate cancer every year on average between 2019 and 2021.

Depression

Mark, who lives in Merthyr Tydfil and travels to every Cardiff City home game, said: “It’s hard to believe how much it affects you until you’ve been through it yourself. Everything revolves around the toilet. Depression can really set in because you can’t do the things that you want to do.

“I’m a Cardiff City season ticket holder, and there’s a gang of us who go down to the games together. Nothing stops me going to see Cardiff City, I’ll be there by hook or by crook, but things could be made much easier for men like me.

“It’s totally changed my life. We used to go for a full day out and really enjoy ourselves, but now I just get there to watch the game and get back again.”

A new study has found that mass match day absences come at a cost to fans’ mental and social health, while clubs and communities lose out on valuable income.

Due to not feeling able to attend any games, 62% of men said they had lost their confidence and 42% said they felt a part of their identity was missing.

Full-time

Statistics show that since becoming incontinent, one in seven male football fans who experience urinary incontinence have blown the full-time whistle on attending matches and half say they now attend fewer games.

Mark was recently featured in a Cardiff City matchday programme, for his efforts walking to raise money for Prostate Cancer UK via their Prostate United initiative.

He has so far raised £3,605 by walking 216km, mainly in his local area with his labradoodle Rosie, who has become somewhat of a local celebrity.

Mark said: “The facilities at Cardiff are great, but the cubicles are always busy, there’s always a queue and it’s a stress getting to the loo and you do feel a bit self-conscious queuing.

“When you do get in and change your incontinence pad or stoma bag, there’s no sanitary bin in the loos. Your only option is to carry it out with you and put it in the waste bins where the cups and the food are. It isn’t ideal but what can you do?

“I just need a sanitary bin, it’s not much to ask for and it would make things easier and much less stressful. When you’re living with cancer, football is a lifeline for you, and for anyone isolated by incontinence.

“Football makes you feel normal, makes you forget your troubles and feel a part of something. We need sanitary bins for men with incontinence, so that we can all get back in the game.”

Anxious

Nick Ridgman, head of support services, Prostate Cancer UK said: “Men who need to dispose of their incontinence pads often have no access to a sanitary bin in male toilets and a lot of men are too anxious to leave home as a result.

“Manchester United’s commitment to supporting men with incontinence is a fantastic step forward and we hope their action will inspire change across the whole football community, from the top of the Premier League to local non-league games.

“By giving men access to the basic facilities they need, we hope more men will feel confident to get back in the game and back to watching live football matches unhampered by their incontinence.

If you need confidential support or information about living with incontinence, you can get in touch with Specialist Nurses on 0800 074 8383, or via email, webchat or WhatsApp at prostatecanceruk.org/nurses.