The campaign aims to get people to ignore the 'taboo' and get talking about the serious issue of bowel cancer.
The NSW Government has launched a $1.9 million bowel cancer awareness campaign to encourage people aged 50-74 to take the test they receive in the mail.
The Cancer Institute NSW campaign, with creative developed by Isobar, addresses the elephant in the room – bowel cancer kills conversations.
“Despite bowel cancer being the second most commonly diagnosed cancer in Australians and the second most common cause of cancer deaths, it is not talked about openly. Because of this, people are underestimating how at risk they are,” Cancer Institute social marketing and campaigns manager Shane Sinnott says.
“In fact, only 39% of people who receive the free bowel cancer screening test in the mail complete it. Our research shows that people are uncomfortable talking about bowel cancer and bowel screening, but having these uncomfortable conversations could save lives."
The campaign features the tagline ‘Bowel cancer kills conversations, but it doesn’t have to kill you'.
“Bowel cancer isn't something people like talking about, so we are trying to normalise the conversation by addressing the awkwardness," Soap creative director Michael Hughes says.
"That's why we approached the topic in such a frank and unexpected way - to kickstart conversation and remove the taboo around a very treatable disease."
The media campaign is being supported by a PR strategy to highlight the stats on bowel cancer and share the stories of bowel cancer survivors.
