I’m also lucky to have accepted the CCAC’s job offer while healthy. West End resident and lawyer Barry Stein, wasn’t so lucky when he developed the non-profit organization and became its president 10 years ago. Stein, who was written up in this column during its initial years, is a survivor of colon cancer that had metastasized to his liver and the outlook was rather dismal: Stein was accorded just a 30 per cent chance of survival. After a period of various medical interventions, and a successful lawsuit against the Quebec government, Stein beat the odds ... and wanted to do whatever he could to help the populace survive this insidious silent killer. It’s silent because by the time symptoms appear, it is often too late to do anything about a disease that affects 14 per cent of women and 16 per cent of men, but that is 90 per cent curable if caught in time.

I don’t want to throw statistics at you now, as I’ll be doing plenty of that in my job during the weeks ahead. What I do want to tell you about is my cool new career, namely National Director of Travelling Exhibits. I’ll be in charge of – wait for it - the Giant Colon, a 40-foot long, eight-foot high CCAC-designed model of the human colon (based on an original Brazilian design) that enables you, by walking inside, to learn about its God-given intricacies. The walk-through also illustrates what happens when diseases including Crohn’s, Colitis and cancer ravage it. Four different sections feature 3D structures, plus lcd-enhanced illustrations and commentary by our expert, Dr. Preventino, to guide you. This incredible apparatus is toured across Canada throughout the year, but especially during March’s National Colon Cancer Awareness Month, with the CHUM’s event kicking things off at Complexe Desjardins March 18 and 19.

A second colon will soon be available for rental by other organizations nation-wide and there has already been keen interest from leading cancer agencies and centres.

So, I’ll be the Giant Colon’s handler, booker, publicist and I will learn more about the human colon than anyone could possibly wish to know. I’m jazzed, I’m thrilled, I’m eager and I’m extremely certain that you, the public, will further benefit from the work done by the CCAC, its staff, volunteers and the many organizations we partner with. Through your support, we can all help beat this killer. For information on the CCAC and to learn how you can protect yourself against colon cancer through regular screening, contact us at 514-875-7745, or go to www.colorectal-cancer.ca to learn more or to make a donation.

By the way, when you spot someone wearing our blue bracelet or pin, it’s a reminder that the sky’s the limit on what we can accomplish together.