The Tribune

By ALESHA CADET

Tribune Features Reporter

acadet@tribunemedia.net

A WOMAN’S valiant battle with colon cancer is the inspiration behind the new non-profit organisation SMB Care Foundation.

With “Shades of Blue”, the SMB Care Foundation recently celebrated its official launch aimed at raising awareness of colon cancer in the Bahamas.

Corey Bruney, the foundation’s managing director, came up with the idea for the organisation after his mother, Dr Sharon Bascom-Bruney, died following a seven-year fight with the disease in 2013.

Mr Bruney said his mother was someone who always put others’ needs before her own, no matter what. And with this foundation he wanted to continue her selflessness and help the Bahamian public in avoiding the same fate his mother faced.
The launch event was held at the Holy Trinity Activity Centre in Stapleton Gardens last Sunday. Members of the foundation said it is their hope that the organisation grows to the point where they can eventually assist cancer patients in funding their treatment. All proceeds from “Shades of Blue” will go towards the development of the SMB Care Foundation and launching its public awareness campaign.
Highlights from the event included an introduction to the SMB Care Foundation and its plans for the future, live music by Caribah, as well as personal and professional testimony presentations on colon cancer. It was hosted well-known Bahamian entertainer Chigozie Ijeoma.
Guest speaker for the event was Dr Gemma Rolle, a gastroenterologist who works in the field of colon cancer and has experience with screening measures.
“We are a small organisation at the moment, and we are currently run by the family,” Mr Bruney said. “I brought the idea to the family and they all jumped on board pretty quickly. It was very encouraging. We have actually just recently been officially registered at the beginning of this month, but the word has been out about us, mainly social media, since the beginning of June.”

After getting started with the foundation, Mr Bruney said he discovered that not many Bahamians were aware of colon cancer. Using himself as an example, Mr Bruney said he did not know anything about the disease until his mother was diagnosed.
“I don’t think enough people know about it and how devastating it can be. I also don’t think that people know how preventable it is with early screening. I would really like to see us help prevent as many instances here in the Bahamas as possible,” he said. “This is one of the more preventable forms of cancer through various forms of screening. Our campaign will educate Bahamians and encourage and provide avenues for early screening in order to prevent the spread of this cancer throughout the body.”

For the remainder of the year, he said, the foundation will devote its energy towards planning events set for March, which is globally observed as Colon Cancer Awareness month.
“We hope to have numerous awareness and fundraising events during the month, all in effort to help educate the Bahamian public about colon cancer. I want to encourage the Bahamas to keep an eye out for us. As we grow, I see no limits to the amount of persons this organisation will be able to help in the fight to prevent and cure this disease,” Mr Bruney said.