By his own admission, Shepparton’s Justin Rooney thought he was bulletproof until an unexpected diagnosis brought him right back down to earth last year.

Leading up to that life-altering day he learned he had bowel cancer at just 45 years old, in July 2024, he had become more breathless and fatigued, and his colour had changed.

Still, Mr Rooney didn’t consider the blood in his stools, coupled with the lethargy, might be pointing to something more sinister than haemorrhoids.

His partner of 18 years, Sharon Pearce, however, was concerned enough to book him a doctor’s appointment.

It was a move that saved his life.

A blood test revealed Mr Rooney’s haemoglobin count had dropped dangerously low to 60, around half the figure it was supposed to hover at.

“I could have passed out any time,” he said.

“I was working out at Tatura for about six months, driving out there, so lucky I didn’t crash and kill myself or someone else on the way to work.”

From there he was sent for a colonoscopy.

“We sort of knew after I had the colonoscopy (that it was cancer) because everything that was seen or coming up on TV started with the letter ‘C’; Cobram, cars,” Mr Rooney said.

“So, we both knew that it was going to be cancer. I just had a feeling.“

His instinct was right.

The specialist who performed the colonoscopy broke the news that Mr Rooney had cancerous polyps in his bowel.

A series of imaging scans at Goulburn Valley Health and in Melbourne followed, where it was discovered the cancer had reached his liver, placing it in the Stage 4 category.

Forced to confront his mortality, Mr Rooney took the next step — around six months of chemotherapy — optimistically.

“You’ve got to be positive about it all, really,” he said.

“Sharon said she’d never thought that I would be like that, and I said, ‘Well, if you think you’re going to be f***ed, you’re going to be, aren’t you?’

“You’ve got to just keep on keeping on and you do what you’ve got to do.”

Besides suffering hand and foot syndrome — a common chemo side effect that causes skin redness, swelling, pain, blistering, peeling and numbness on the palms and soles of hands and feet — and a bit of muscle loss, Mr Rooney said chemotherapy didn’t knock him around too much.

In February, he underwent surgery followed by a further scan.

Eight weeks after, he resumed chemotherapy.

He then faced a long wait for the results.

In August, Mr Rooney was given the all-clear.

His ordeal inspired his two brothers to book colonoscopies, but his influence extended much further than home when Mr Rooney accepted an invitation to speak at this year’s Biggest Ever Blokes Lunch.

The experience took him beyond his comfort zone, but he said the message was important, particularly for men.

“I don’t want people going through what I had to go through,” Mr Rooney said.

“If they could get on top of it early or if they weren’t afraid just to go to the doctor, like, I only went cause the missus booked me in ’cause otherwise I wouldn’t have.

“But it shouldn’t be up to her to do it; it should be up to us.

“A lot of blokes are like, it’ll go away or we’ll deal with it later on, but it could be too late.”

Mr Rooney recognised many people, young and old, don’t survive.

His luck is not lost on him, as he explained how he sees life through a different lens now and doesn’t let unimportant things rent space inside his head.

“I probably just enjoy life more, as in the little things, I suppose,” he said.

“I think, oh well, I’m still here to do this, like where others are not coming out the other end.”

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Sunday, 7th November 2027

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