Survivors and their families take a walk against cancer
JACKSON, Tenn. –A cancer survivor partnered with St.Jude in the fight against colon cancer.
Cancer survivors and their families gathered in Jackson for the first annual Barbour Colon Cancer Walk.
Many of the participants said they came out to help raise awareness, so that young and old adults alike could at least have some information about preventive measures.
Deneene Barbour, a cancer survivor and founder of the Colon Cancer Foundation, says she wanted to get the community actively involved and informed through exercise.
“We’re just doing like a ten lap which is two miles and just to promote colon cancer awareness, get out let them know that exercise is key too. I’m not telling people to walk ten, if you can’t walk ten, walk two, walk one,” Barbour said.
Barbour says many adults are afraid to go to the doctor due to expensive medical bills and the fear of being diagnosed.
She said, that’s a problem because taking an early screening for cancer is what saved her life.
“You got young people out here hurting and fighting each other for no reason. Get into a fight for your life when your doctor tells you, you got a deadly disease that might take you out of here the next day. Because you don’t know how long you have, because you didn’t go get a wellness check. That’s the fight, that’s the real fight,” Barbour said.
Jeri Taylor, The Salvation Army Community Specialist, says it’s important that the community knows they have options involving annual screenings for cancer.
“The role that the Salvation Army would do, is oversee the funds for anyone who wanted to go have a health screening or get tested. They will go through the Salvation Army and the foundation will pay for it,” Taylor said.
Pamela Fowler, an accountant for the Salvation Army, says they save a lot of lives with more programs like this.
“I have a sister that died of colon cancer and she knew nothing about the screening and stuff like that. If she would have been able to have something like this, it might have saved her life,” Fowler said.
For more information visit the local Salvation Army website here.
