Jenny-May Clarkson – Media Ambassador
Breakfast TVNZ presenter, Jenny-May Clarkson, lost her brother to bowel cancer at age 56, so she knows first hand how important it is to seek help early. “While he had all the classic symptoms, I’m not certain he was aware that it was cancer.” By the time he was diagnosed, it was already advanced and he spent two years undergoing various treatments before finally succumbing to the disease.
Understandably, Jenny-May is passionate about encouraging New Zealanders to seek help or at the very least, have a conversation with someone about it. “It’s about encouraging people to overcome their fear and seek help when they know something isn’t right. If you do find out you have cancer, you won’t necessarily die of it – if you get help early enough.”
“When I talk to kids about their sporting goals, I tell them to ‘face the fear and do it anyway’. With cancer, it’s about flipping that. Just face the fear of knowing: the sooner you do, the greater the hope.”
