ATLANTA , Georgia ( CNN ) -- During the first seven years of their relationship , Judy Kelly does n't remember her boyfriend , Bill Horrisberger , ever going to a doctor . Bill Horrisberger , right , put off going to the doctor for more than a month , despite chest pains and shortness of breath . `` On a scale of one to 10 , Bill was a zero , '' Kelly remarked when asked about her partner 's willingness to get an annual checkup . It turns out Horrisberger , 62 , a retired English teacher from Atlanta , Georgia , is n't the only man who is reluctant to put on a hospital gown . The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality estimates that American men are 25 percent less likely than women to visit a doctor . `` A lot of times , it 's very difficult for them to be convinced that they need to see a physician for a problem , '' said Dr. Allen Dollar , a cardiologist with Emory School of Medicine in Atlanta . `` To a large extent , there is a lot of denial going on , and in some cases , that denial can be deadly . '' Watch the battle to get men to the doctor » . Denial is an understatement for Horrisberger , one of Dollar 's patients . Horrisberger was short of breath and experiencing chest pains in early December . Despite Kelly 's repeated requests , he put off a doctor 's visit for more than a month . `` There might have been some fear . My father had heart disease , '' admitted Horrisberger , who ended up having an operation to replace a faulty aortic valve and triple bypass surgery . `` There are a lot of things in Bill 's story that could have been done preventionwise , '' Dollar said . The heart problems `` did n't show up overnight . '' Horrisberger admitted he 's learned his lesson about getting regular checkups . `` You do n't know everything about yourself , so it would be a good idea to have someone else look at you , '' he said . That closer look by a doctor should n't be just every now and then when a patient feels bad . Dr. David Dodson , an expert on men 's health at the Marino Center in Wellesley , Massachusetts , recommends that healthy men under 50 get a regular checkup every 18 months . After 50 , he suggests , men should see their doctors annually . `` Men should take their health seriously , '' said Dodson , who is also the chairman of the Men 's Health Committee for the Massachusetts Medical Society . `` It 's not just for their own sake . It 's because men are part of families , and families depend on them . '' Health problems do n't just affect older men , he said . Certain cancers , such as those of the testes and skin , are more common in young men . Younger men are also at higher risk than older men for sexually transmitted diseases , Dodson noted . And some men should talk to their doctor about being tested for gonorrhea , syphilis , chlamydia and HIV , the health care research agency suggests . As men age , Dodson said , they are more likely to develop high cholesterol and high blood pressure . Those conditions can increase the risk of heart disease , stroke and diabetes . `` The older you get , the more important those exams are , '' Dodson said . Around age 50 , he wants men to be screened for colon and prostate cancer , in addition to regular blood pressure , cholesterol and blood sugar tests . `` There are so many things that go on in the human body that have no warning signs whatsoever until disaster strikes , '' he said . At least half his male patients end up making an appointment only after they 've been prodded by a wife or other loved one , the doctor added . Looking back , Horrisberger wished he had listened to his girlfriend earlier and not waited to see the doctor . `` Once he got started and realized what was at stake , he was a good patient , '' Kelly said with a smile .
American men are 25 percent less likely than women to visit a doctor , agency says . Men should see their doctors every 18 months after every 18 months , says Dr. Bill Horrisberger . Healthy men under 50 should get a checkup age 50 , he says . Around age 50 , men should be screened for colon and prostate cancer , he says .