THE UK television channel ‘Channel 4’ will be live broadcasting a colonoscopy procedure during a television advert break on 18th January 2017. [N.B. Dependent on publication date]
The 90-second “Live from the Inside” advert will be shown at approximately 3:25 pm GMT. A 60-second version of advert will be shown later in the evening at around 9:30 pm GMT. Viewers will be able to watch the removal of bowel polyps from a patient through a camera fixed to the colonoscope. Bowel polyps are common small growths found on the inner lining of the colon or rectum. These growths are common and can sometimes become cancerous if left untreated.
The procedure will also be streamed live on Facebook and across Channel 4’s social media. It will be performed by Dr Sunil Dolwani, Institute of Medical Genetics, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK, on patient Phillip McSparron. McSparron will receive the colonoscopy after routine bowel cancer screening detected traces of blood in his faeces. Further tests showed he had two bowel polyps, which are to be removed during the broadcast. “By allowing my colonoscopy to be shown live, I hope to show that it is a simple procedure, not something to be frightened of. Hopefully people will be interested in seeing the live footage and it will encourage them to be more willing to talk about cancer and think about taking up regular screening when offered,” McSparron remarked.
The advert is part of the ‘Right Now’ campaign launched at the end of last year by charity Cancer Research UK to raise awareness of the day-to-day lives for those affected by cancer. The advert is intended to show that procedures such as the one being broadcast are the result of continued investment in research towards the prevention and treatment of cancer. “At Cancer Research UK, we rely on people’s generosity as we do not receive any government funding for our life-saving research. We hope our live advert will show the impact research has made so far, and inspire people to see how their support can enable continued work to beat cancer, “said Ed Aspel, Executive Director of Fundraising and Marketing at Cancer Research UK.
Jack Redden, Reporter
