Chemotherapy could save your life if you are diagnosed with testicular cancer but it could also lead to long-term side effects, a new study suggests.

The study, which was published in the latest online Journal of the National Cancer Institute, looked at 1409 Norwegian men who were treated for testicular cancer between 1980 and 1994 and took part in a follow-up study between 1998 and 2002.

They found that those who received chemotherapy were at significantly increased risk of suffering a range of severe side effects.

These included neuropathy (damage to nerves), tinnitus (ringing in the ear) hearing difficulty and discolouration of the hands or feet when exposed to the cold.

“A major aim in the treatment of testicular cancer is to minimize toxic effects without compromising the high cure rate," wrote Dr. Marianne Brydoy and colleagues from the oncology department at Haukeland University Hospital in Bergen, Norway where the research was conducted.

They recommended keeping chemo doses to a relatively low level to limit toxicity.

New Zealand has one of the highest rates of testicular cancer in the world.

A man’s chance of developing the cancer over his lifetime is about one in 250 (0.4%) and it is most common in men aged 15-40, particularly those in their mid-twenties.

However it also has one of the highest cure rates of all cancers at over 90%.