Huge kudos to Get Your Rear in Gear – Baton Rouge. They partnered with local television station WBRZ TV (ABC) in March 2012 for an on-air PSA and news story campaign to increase awareness of colon cancer and encouraged viewers to get screened. The American Society of Colon & Rectal Surgeons honored WBRZ News 2 Louisiana with an ASCRS 2013 National Media Award. WBRZ News 2 won first place in the Broadcast category for their public service announcements and three-part series on “The Cancer Nobody Talks About,” reported by John Pastorek, promoted awareness of screenings and prevention of colon cancer.
Photo courtesy WBRZ TV
The WBRZ series was notable for its interviews with patients who told their stories and shared video of their colonoscopies, so viewers could colon tumors as they appeared inside a patient. The graphic video was effective in getting out the screening message while delivering compelling narrative.
“We were excited that WBRZ TV received this honor,” said Dr. Kelly Finan, a colorectal surgeon in Baton Rouge and chair of the local race. “Louisiana has some of the highest incidence and lowest screening rates for colorectal cancers in the country. Our goal in working with WBRZ TV was to educate the Baton Rouge public about the importance of screening for this preventable and treatable cancer. As a member of ASCRS and chair of Get Your Rear in Gear – Baton Rouge, I am proud that this effort received national recognition.”
You can watch the three-part series below.
Story #1: Louisiana Has One of the Highest Rates of Mortality from Colon Cancer in the Country
Story #2: Family History is a Major Risk Factor for Colon Cancer
Story #3: Colon Cancer Survivors Speak Out to Save Lives
