Don your loud ties for bowel cancer awareness

Thursday 24 January 2019

With a day to go before the annual awareness raising day, Bowel Cancer Guernsey wants everyone to dig out their loudest tie to wear to school and work tomorrow.

As well as raising awareness, the charity wants to raise lots of money tomorrow so it can buy specialist diagnostic equipment.

The organisers hope that all types of workplaces will get behind the initiative and encourage their employees to get involved.

"In the past, people have had a lot of fun with this event, such as holding a ‘loudest tie and silly scarf competition’ at work. If you have a great loud tie or scarf that you wore last year, but don’t fancy wearing it again why not swap with one of your colleagues for the day?" said Anne Brouard.

As well as the annual loud tie day, this year, Bowel Cancer Guernsey - along with sponsor Skipton International - is hosting a new event, 'The Skipton Smith Street Dash' will see teams racing up Smith Street as fast as they can. The catch is that it's a three legged race, with competitors tied together with loud ties binding their legs.

Aaron Walden, Commercial Manager at Skipton International, said: "We are delighted to be supporting such a worthwhile charity by sponsoring this event. Something like this hasn’t been done before and we think it is a great way to get businesses involved in Loud Tie Day. It’s going to be a lot of fun and we hope to see lots of teams wearing loud ties, embracing their competitive spirit and taking part."

Ms Brouard said; "We are so grateful to Skipton for making this event possible thanks to their generous sponsorship. It is fantastic to be able to do something different and exciting for Loud Tie Day. We hope that lots of people will take part or watch."

The 2017 Channel Islands Cancer Registry Report showed that Bowel Cancer is the Channel Islands’ fourth biggest cancer killer, so Ms Brouard said the charity wants people to be aware of the symptoms and that they speak to their GP if they have any concerns, as early detection is critical.

"We know that bowel cancer is seen as only affecting the older generation, as they are at a greater risk of developing the disease. However, we can’t emphasise enough that it can affect anyone at any age," she said.

Following the successful launch of the Faecal Immunochemical Test (FIT) in 2018, the charity said it will be working closely with the Health Promotion Unit (HPU) and Public Health to decide how the funds raised from the 2019 Loud Tie campaign will be used.

Ms Brouard hopes for that reason that as many people as possible take part.

"We hope everyone will have a good rummage in their wardrobes or at one of the island’s charity shops that are supporting the campaign and find a bright tie or scarf. That will help us get islanders thinking about bowel health,’ said Mrs Brouard Bowel Cancer Guernsey is committed to improving awareness of Bowel Cancer across the Bailiwick by spreading the message that understanding the risks, symptoms and early treatment can save lives."

For more information on how you can get involved in Loud Tie Day or enter the Skipton Smith Street Dash, visit bowelcancerguernsey.gg or check out Twitter @BowelCancerGSY and Facebook @BCancerGuernsey

Pictured top: Get your loudest tie out for tomorrow's fundraiser!