SkiFletch wrote:Those of you with a Y chromasome are more likely to know this (or who he even is), but ESPN anchor Stuart Scott announced that he is battling cancer again. That in and of itself is troubling to me, but why can't we just call a spade a spade and say he has colon cancer? I've not found him publicly saying what type of cancer he has as he never specifies. But we do know it was found in tissue resulting from the removal of his appendix... Not much faith required to believe it was a colon primary.
So why can't he/"we" say it? Our attitudes as a society regarding colon cancer NEED to change and I truly wish high-profile folks like Stuart Scott would just come out and say they have CRC. Part of the reason this disease is so deadly is that folks refuse to get screenings out of fear of the unkown, and just plain being uncomfortable with anything involving poop. Get over it and maybe you'll live longer. If a man like Stuart Scott says he had CRC and proved that he can work through his treatments, maybe we'd get a few more people in for a scope. They would have a more positive image of what treatment looks like instead of sticking their heads in the sand fearing for what it might be.
I see it all the time when I tell people I'm a CRC patient for the first time. In that moment of realization there is often a look of fear mixed with disgust. Some few even espouse that in their first words. Tell someone you have breast cancer or pancreatic cancer and the response is all sympathy. Truly not everyone has the wrong reaction and many folks "get it" but I'd say they are at the very least in the minority compared to those who do. And until high profile people and celebrities start admitting they have COLON cancer, those attitudes will never change. We all poop... Get over it
...so many obituaries of "young" people do not mention one word about the cause of death unless it is breast cancer. Why are so many families afraid/shy about the cause of death? Drives me nuts.
Tell someone you have breast cancer or pancreatic cancer and the response is all sympathy. Truly not everyone has the wrong reaction and many folks "get it" but I'd say they are at the very least in the minority compared to those who do.
And until high profile people and celebrities start admitting they have COLON cancer, those attitudes will never change.
In general, I don't see why ESPN couldn't do something like this (a lot of their viewers will be impacted by colon cancer at some point in their lives), but I don't think it should attempt to involve Stuart Scott. First, we don't know that he has CRC. Second, his privacy is his business. If he wanted to do a PSA, he would.if there would be any sort of platform at ESPN to perhaps do some sort of public service announcement about CRC---or to do something to raise awareness, anyway.
Return to “Colon Talk - Colon cancer (colorectal cancer) support forum”
Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 160 guests