I didn't realize Farrah Fawcett had died of anal cancer. There were references to her ailment as cancer "below the colon." It was like my mother, when I was a kid, calling the vagina "your bottom in front." Up through 2010, anal cancer had no nonprofit society, no one to organize fund-raisers and outreach, no colored awareness ribbon. {Even appendix cancer has a ribbon.}* Like cervical cancer, anal cancer is caused by the human papillomavirus; people get it via sex with an infected person, and that seems like something they ought to know when making decisions about using a condom.
In her book "Gulp: Adventures on the Alimentary Canal," Mary Roach reflects on the lack of awareness surrounding anal cancer, which she notes was infamously highlighted by Farrah Fawcett's death from the disease. She points out the euphemistic language often used to describe female anatomy, comparing it to how her mother referred to the vagina. This lack of directness contributes to a societal ignorance about certain cancers.
Roach highlights that until...
