LARRIKIN Aussie comedian Dave O'Neil is being serious for a minute to scare the crap out of you.
O'Neil has ditched his stand-up for a new sit-down routine to raise awareness of bowel cancer.
Working with the Cancer Institute of NSW, O'Neil is bringing attention to the A Gift for Living National Bowel Cancer Screening Program - a free, potentially life-saving test kit that many people are simply ignoring.
In Australia, someone dies of bowel cancer every two hours.
But, despite it being one of our biggest cancer killers, people are not taking potentially life-saving action because they don't see bowel cancer as important.
Research by Cancer Institute NSW has revealed many people believe bowel cancer is less important because of its relatively low profile compared with other cancers.
The lack of awareness is primarily due to the fact that people find it difficult and embarrassing to talk about.
When detected early, up to 90 per cent of bowel cancers can be successfully treated.
For this reason, the National Bowel Cancer Screening Program provides simple to use, at-home bowel cancer screening kits regularly to all Australians aged 50-74.
The kits can detect the presence of cancer long before symptoms appear, yet NSW has the second lowest participation rate in the country.
So, why is it that many older people are unwilling to address a subject that most children have no problem with?
Are we literally dying of embarrassment?
Based on the number of people who fail to complete and return the test, it seems the answer is yes.
While bowel cancer is no laughing matter, as any parent or grandparent knows, there was a time in life when it was easy to talk about poo.
The Cancer Institute NSW and the National Bowel Cancer Screening Program urge people to take their cues from our kids and overcome the embarrassment about the screening process.
Hear what Dave O'Neil has to say.
Cancer Institute NSW - cancerinstitute.org.au
National Bowel Cancer Screening Program - cancerscreening.gov.au
