A Colon Cancer Survivor Posed As Famous Figures In Incredible Photo Shoot To Obliterate The Shame Of Her Stoma Bag

• Stigma and shame/embarrassment following installment of stoma bag post-surgery
  • Stoma bag/ colostomy bag: pouch that fits over stoma and collects urine + feces to divert flow from bowel or bladder
• Mills survived stage 3 cancer and wanted to embrace the outcome of the surgery fully, posing as iconic figures while keeping a spotlight for her stoma bag instead of hiding it

“There’s nothing to be embarrassed about. Yes, it will change your body but it’s not anything that you can’t overcome.”

Mills, https://www.survivornet.com/articles/a-colon-cancer-survivor-posed-as-famous-figures-in-incredible-photo-shoot-to-obliterate-the-shame-of-her-stoma-bag/

• Reflections:
  • Colon cancer, compared to others, isn’t as talked about or present in media or the larger public conversations.
    • Indignity of symptoms, post-surgery outcomes viewed as embarrassing and awkward to mention
  • When thinking of cancer, people often think of breast, cervical and ovarian cancer and don’t think of cancers of lung, colon, prostate, liver or stomach- deem to be less common and harder to diagnose as intestinal disorders
    • Visibility as important in both medical sphere and non-medical sphere -> representation brings attention and consequently changes