A giant toilet roll is coming to Manchester City’s Etihad Stadium – and it’s all in the name of Bowel Cancer Awareness Month as it aims to ‘Lift the Lid’ on the fatal disease.
The loo roll, which doubles up as a massive drum, travels to Manchester on April 25, with more than 50 volunteers out in force during the build-up to City’s game against Aston Villa at 5:30pm.
The event is organised by national charity Beating Bowel Cancer, which has been raising awareness of the deadly illness since 1999 by informing people of the symptoms and promoting early diagnosis.
Rachel Thomas, the charity’s community fundraiser for the North West, told MM: “We really do encourage people to have as many conversations about the disease as possible.
“We’ll be talking about the cancer and the key work of our charity and also the symptoms of bowel cancer.
“It does affect men and women equally but we do find perhaps that women are more open to talking about bowel cancer and their concerns in general.
“We will be trying to approach more men I guess on the day, to break the stigma of bowel cancer and just to encourage them to have that conversation.”
Symptoms of the cancer include bleeding from the bottom, abdominal pain (especially if severe), a lump in your tummy and weight loss or tiredness.
Currently, nine out of 10 cases of bowel cancer can be treated successfully if diagnosed early – it’s just a matter of people recognising it as soon as possible.
As well as the bog stand, there are many other ways people across the region can get involved, with a handful choosing to take on the Greater Manchester Marathon on April 19.
Rachel added: “It’s quite a new marathon for the city but our figures have increased in comparison to last year and we are hoping that it will continue to rise.
“In previous years we have had a lot of people doing the 10k, which is coming up in May and has proved very successful, as has the Great Manchester Cycle.”
The charity is always looking for people to help throughout the year with one-off collections or organise their own fundraising event.
If you would like to find out more information or to get involved with the charity, you can email Rachel here.
