Vaginal Cancer

Mrs PEARCE (King) (15:27): Being one day from International Women's Day, I am tempted to use this as an opportunity to celebrate the many women in my life, women who I am eternally grateful for, but I think they would understand my desire today to talk about one specific woman—my friend Kate.

I am so fortunate to have formed life-lasting friendships during my school years. Maybe it is one of the benefits of being raised in a country town. My friendship with Kate is certainly one of those. Kate is one of the most formidable women I know. She has the driest sense of humour. She is a fierce supporter of women. She is a beast on the hockey field. She has been a tradie up in the mines and, for many years now, she has been keeping communities safe through her work as a police officer. So it is safe to say she is one bloody tough cookie.

But over the past couple of years she has had a fight on her hands and it has been really tough. She has been fighting vaginal cancer, a cancer which she received diagnosis of during her pregnancy of her third child. It was not an easy road for her to be able to get that diagnosis either, and what she has had to endure has been one of the hardest things that I have witnessed somebody go through.

Through her experiences, which have been trying and isolating, her one desire outside of kicking its arse is to encourage greater awareness of this form of cancer. To help, I thought I would share a couple of pointers from her for those who have only just learnt about this form of cancer. Firstly, Kate wants you to know that it exists. You see, last year it was only around 100 women who were diagnosed with vaginal cancer, so it is not overly common to hear about it or know of somebody who is going through this. From what I can see, it does not have its own standalone day nor does it have its own ribbon.

Of course, there is Gynaecological Cancer Awareness Month, which highlights the major gynaecological cancers of which there are around eight. But as Kate pointed out to me, how many of us can name just four of those cancers? She certainly could not until she received her diagnosis.

All cancers are terrible, but some are more uncomfortable to talk about than others, and that certainly needs to change. People are robbed of their possible support networks if they are unable to feel comfortable talking about their diagnosis and their journey.

That leads me to Kate's second point. Please get to know your body. Do not feel uncomfortable talking about it, and please do not make others uncomfortable for talking about theirs. As Kate said to me, everybody knows how to feel for lumps and bumps when it comes to breast cancer awareness, and that is fantastic. It is a testament to the hard work of the movement to reduce the stigma and encourage the health and wellbeing of women. However, how many people truly understand the female reproductive system and how to protect it?

HPV vaccines are incredibly efficient, but women still need to ensure they are keeping a regular check of their bodies and getting their pap smears. It pays to be safe and alert, even if it is uncomfortable. If you do not have a cervix you certainly still need a smear, and we encourage vault smears. As a government we want to ensure fewer women miss out on regular testing, which is why we provided funding towards the You Can Do It campaign, aiming to share the news that women are now able to undertake self-collection tests at home.

So please, if you are a woman who has been putting this off, use this as an opportunity to get yourself sorted today. If you are a woman who has concerns, and you maybe feel that something is just not quite right with your body, please go and see a doctor and seek advice. Putting it off will only put you further at risk.

Kate and I have a little tradition. Many of our catch-ups involve walking around Cobbler Creek and talking a bit of smack. It is one of my favourite things to do, and I think it is one of hers as well. It is why I have decided to participate in the March Charge this year. I am aiming to cover 150 kilometres this month, hoping to raise funds towards cancer research, prevention programs and support services.

I have covered 31 kilometres in the past week and, yes, I am a little bit stiff, but it is nothing compared to what people like Kate have had to endure. To all who have supported me with this endeavour and all who will support me for the weeks to come, thank you very much. Let's work together to help fight cancer.