Ben Stiller Had Prostate Cancer

In a new essay, written by Ben Stiller, a prostate cancer diagnosis was revealed to the world, as well as, all the triumphs and tribulations involved. Stiller is best known for his uncanny ability to make people roar with laughter.

The actor, director and writer hoped to stop and make some people think with his essay that he wrote about his prostate cancer experience in 2014. From June to September he was on a crazy roller coaster ride that so many men in America can identify with – over 180,000 men to be exact.

The essay was published and released at the same time as Benjamin Edward Meara “Ben” Stiller's appearance on “The Howard Stern Show,” the place he first brought up his diagnosis. The goal is to raise awareness of prostate cancer and that early testing can save lives.

The Masculine name Ben is short for Benjamin, which is taken from the Hebrew name Binyamin that means “son of the right hand” or “son of the south”. The name became popular after Benjamin from the Old Testament, who is the twelfth son of Jacob. Benjamin was the founder of a southern tribes of Hebrews. In fact, the biblical Benjamin was originally named ben-only in Hebrew that meant “son of my sorrow” by his mother. However, it was later changed by his father, after his mother died shortly after giving birth.

The English name Benjamin became common after the Protestant Reformation. There have been many famous people with the given name, like Benjamin Franklin the American inventor, statesman, scientist and philosopher.