Not all cancer is pink- your anus: no laughing matter!

Not all cancer is Pink: 

As an outcome of my latest blog "not all cancer is pink: thinking outside of the bra" I have decided to write a blog post raising awareness of each different type of cancer (alphabetically). First have a read of that last blog post here: http://littlemisssurvivor93.blogspot.co.uk/2014/11/not-all-cancer-is-pink-thinking-outside.html 

The first cancer on the list is anal cancer. The anus is the butt of a lot of jokes (excuse the pun) but anal cancer is not a joke. Around 1000 people are diagnosed with cancer each year in the UK (Macmillan cancer support). 


What is your anus:

I'm sure you will all know, but if not:  The anus is the name for the muscular opening to the very end of the large bowel. It can be seen below: 

The Signs and Symptoms:

• bleeding from the anus 
• pain, discomfort and itching around anus 
• lumps around the anus (could be confused with hemorrhoids) 
• difficulty controlling bowel movements 
• discharge 
• ulsters that can even spread to the buttocks   

Causes and possible risk factors

Human papilloma virus (HPV): 
this cancer is more likely to happen to those who have contracted the virus HPV


Sexual activity: 
people who have anal intercourse are more likely to develop this type of cancer

Lowered immunity: 
people who have a lowered immunity due to conditions like HIV or who are taking immunity suppressors are more likely to be diagnosed with this cancer

Smoking: 
those who smoke are at a higher risk of developing anal cancer


Real life story:

To help you all better understand what living with an anal cancer diagnosis is likeI have included this video of a real life anal cancer patient.


Name:  Tania

Age:  43

Cancer type:  Anal

Something that makes her brilliant: 
She named her anal cancer blog "A bum deal"
http://abumdeal.blogspot.co.uk/



What colour is anal cancer: 

In the post that started this all off I mentioned that most people don't know the support colours for different types of cancer. Sure everyone knows Pink= breast cancer. However do you know the colour of the anal cancer ribbons?

The colour of anal cancer is Purple and Green, and i'd be happy to wear it to show my support!






Thank you for reading this: the next "Not all cancer is pink" update will be about cancer of the bile duct. Do you know the colour of that cancer? 


Amy x