Toronto man offers "My Left Nut" as cancer potion

By Naomi Kim

TORONTO (Reuters) - On the premise that laughter is the best medicine for testicular cancer, a Toronto actor has developed a one-man show, "My Left Nut", that he hopes to tour across Canada later this year.

Daniel Schneiderman, 29, originally chronicled his experience with the disease from diagnosis, to surgery (his left testicle was removed), to treatment in candid and humorous e-mails sent to friends and family in late 2005. Urged by the several friends and his mother, he has now turned the material into a show.

"The e-mails, for me, were a great outlet to just think about it and also to deal with it," Schneiderman said. "And the way that I dealt with it is finding humor in the situation. And, you know, it's about balls, so there was a lot of material to find humor in."

Schneiderman said early detection and diagnosis were key to his treatment. Testicular cancer is the most common cancer in males aged 15 to 34.

"My Left Nut" is being performed as part of next week's Help Kick Cancer in the Balls! fund-raiser in Toronto. The event also features stand-up comedians and a giant testicle-shaped pinata.

Schneiderman hopes to take the show on tour, targeting high schools. Teenagers, he noted, are often a challenging audience because of embarrassment and fear of body-related issues.