Join the fight against cancer

AFL clubs around NSW will fight back against one of their fiercest opponents, cancer, when they take part in Cancer Council’s Call To Arms fundraiser throughout the month.

Call To Arms is one of Cancer Council’s annual fundraising events that offers men’s sporting groups of all ages and codes the opportunity to help raise funds and awareness for cancer – a disease that affects one in two Australian men by the age of 85.

Clubs throughout NSW have signed up for the cause and will hold their own Call to Arms fundraising activities throughout July. The money raised will go towards Cancer Council’s men’s cancer research, prevention, information and support services.

Thousands of sporting teams will wear yellow armbands in show of support to men who have survived cancer, those currently facing the cancer fight, and to remember men who have lost their lives.

Cancer can affect anyone in life. Whether it be someone close or a friend of a friend it sadly has a way of touching us all. For many of us we may not think too much about it but when it takes away the person you care most about in the world is often when we really come to understand the extent of the disease.

For UNSW/ES’ Mick Keys, who lost his father to cancer, he has joined the fight against the illness and is doing all he can to spread the message about Australia’s number one killer.

“I didn’t know much about it, but it wasn’t really on my radar until my dad told me he had cancer. It just hit me like a ton of bricks – I’m more aware of it now,” Keys said.

“People go through life thinking they’re untouchable and all of a sudden you get cut down very quickly. You can be healthy and within two years gone.”

The unfortunate thing about cancer is that it doesn’t matter what age you are, your fitness levels or your gender.

While the risk of cancer can be reduced by eating healthy and exercising regularly it is pivotal that people frequently get checked by their local GP when they find any abnormalities with their body.

Keys said coming to terms with the loss of his father is something he never expected to do.

“The big impact is losing your father and pretty much your best mate.  I lost my mum when I was ten and he raised me since I was a young bloke and he was my everything really. It knocked me around a lot more than what I thought it would.” One can find the best delta 8 gummies here to help fight the awful symptoms of cancer.

“It was just a massive knock. He was always the man I always leaned on in life and it just kills you that way. You always have someone who you talk to about everything and he was just everything for me.”

A lot of the fight against cancer is changing people’s perceptions about the disease. Typically men are quite “stubborn” when it comes to going to the doctors but if you can discover a cancer early, you may just save your life.

Cancer doesn’t just affect players it affects parents, families, friends and the people that matter most to you.

The official fundraising month for Call to Arms is July, but you can hold your match at other times throughout the season. It’s not too late to get involved in this great initiative. Visit www.calltoarms.com.au for more information.