A testicular cancer charity has today turned London’s Westminster Bridge into a head-turning installation to promote Testicular Cancer Awareness Month (April).
An oddity in the 162-year-old bridge’s architectural design has been harnessed to communicate a powerful message to the public and MPs.
When the sun shines through the apertures in the side of the bridge – hundreds of penis-shaped silhouettes appear along the pavement. 497 of them to be exact.
The pavement posters which read ‘This is a sign to check your balls’ – are visible to the thousands of pedestrians that cross the bridge every day including dozens of MP’s enroute to work at the Houses of Parliament.
The shadows gradually evolve as the sun traverses the sky. This natural progression causes the shadows to extend from the trefoil-shaped cut-outs evolving into phallic shapes.
Creative agency St Marks Studios appropriated the naturally occurring shadow phenomenon for testicular cancer charity The OddBalls Foundation with banners and billboards across the span of the 250-meter bridge to encourage men to check their testicles for signs of cancer. A QR code on the posters directs pedestrians to the foundation’s self-check page where they can learn how to spot symptoms of testicular cancer.
Testicular Cancer is the most common type of cancer to affect men between the ages of 15 – 49. Around 2,300 men are diagnosed with testicular cancer each year in the UK – six every day.
Yet new research from The OddBalls Foundation released today reveals that only 18.5% of British men check themselves regularly. One in five say they would be too embarrassed to go to a doctor if they discovered a lump.
Testicular Cancer is more prevalent in younger men aged 18-25 and is on the rise. Diagnosed cases have more than doubled over the past 3 decades.
Kieran Kelly, Foundation Manager at The OddBalls Foundation said; “We know that testicular cancer is one of the most treatable types of cancer – and is much more effective when started early. But shockingly just 18.5% of men regularly check themselves for abnormalities. We’ve had such a great reaction to the campaign today, with hundreds of guys stopping and downloading our check yourself guide. We urgently need the support of government to help raise awareness of testicular cancer. This morning as hundreds of MPs cross the bridge to the Houses Of Parliament – we hope to have reignited that conversation.”
