The Truth Of The Matter Is....

In this “celebrity" driven day and age it is vital that people use their status for the help and publicity of diseases such as cancer. What I do have problems with however is the way that cancer is portrayed within the media with such a strong celebrity stance almost as if these celebrities were the ones that “invented” it. In 2005 the singer Kylie Minogue was diagnosed with having breast cancer. At first I felt that the media enlightened the public on the seriousness of this disease, which I’m sure in turn encouraged many women to check themselves more thoroughly and in the correct manner. However as the weeks went on there wasn’t a time where Kylie and cancer were not mentioned in the same breath. Yes, it is terrible that she was ill and yes just because she is a celebrity doesn’t mean that she isn’t a normal person too - but she wasn’t the only person in the world to have cancer. In my opinion surely Kylie was in the best possible position if you are unwell. After all she had the very best private treatment in both Australia and Paris, she was able to take time off from working to convalesce, time she happened to spend writing a book which was published (surely another perk of being a celebrity.) In no way am I belittlingKylie’s battle with cancer, I have in fact met her and she seemed a very genuine and down to earth woman. However, she has an advantages over us “mere mortals” and so surely we should be looking to the “average Joe” to inspire us. You know, the ones like us that probably have no access to private healthcare, who are unable to enjoy the sunny climate of Australia while we recover from chemotherapy and who don’t have millions of pounds to fall back on. Obviously no amount of money can keep you from illness, but it sure would help! I would take rich with cancer over poor with cancer any day. Don’t get me wrong, just because she had all of that money didn’t mean she would survive, but I bet she had a better chance than most. It is a fact that women with breast cancer who live in affluent areas have a better chance of survival than those women living in deprived areas. I cannot stand the way in which the media talk about Kylie is as if she was the first woman to ever get this disease, and I truly believe that it demeans every other woman’s brave fight. In an article in the Daily Mirror on 18 April 2008 they covered a story about another celebrity, Trisha Goddard, who had recently been diagnosed with breast cancer. In it Trisha said that Kylie Minogue’s successful battle with breast cancer was an inspiration and – I quote - “thank God for Kylie. Id read so much about her and it was really, well hang on girl, she’s alright” Surely Trisha should be using every woman’s situation as an inspiration, and not just another celebrities? I think that it is all well and good admiring another famous persons fight, however it would personally be more of an inspiration to me to hear about a non- celeb’s experience. We all of us aspire to be something we are not, and reach for that seemingly unattainable goal and in such situations as breast cancer role models such as Kylie do serve a purpose. However I think that it is imperative that “celebrity” doesn’t become the norm. There are many magazines on the market who are in the position to influence and shape young girl s and women on things such as their weight and the way they dress, even up to how to get and keep a man. These magazines are in the perfectposition to show their readers real lives of real women and yet they chooseto instead focus on women such as Paris Hilton drunkenly falling out of aclub wearing no knickers or talk of Eva Longoria being pregnant because she is looking slightly more rounded than usual. The magazines should be championing every day, normal, non-celebs especially where issues suchas cancer are apparent. Yes Kylie Minogue is a person like you or I, but if we’re honest, a million miles away from us. More recently Jade Goody's fight with cervical cancer and tragic death have been publicised every single day with some magazines and newspapersgoing as far as to having special mermorial pull out sections covering her life. It was also claimed that Stephen Fry likended her to Princess Diana and Heat magazine likened her life and death to that of Marilyn Monroe. Am I the only person to think that this is absolutely crazy?? For one it is very hypocritical given that when she wasnt ill these publications jumped on the bandwagon and damned her whenever they got the chance to, but now they are likening her to the legend that is Monroe and to some extent Princess Diana who, even though in my opinion wasnt that amazing, admitadly did more than most of the Royal family put together. Yes it is a tragic loss, one I would not wish upon anyone, but there are millions of people suffering with cancer in the world and I would rather have someone real champion the cause rather than a "celebrities", who truth be told live in a totally different world than us.