Comedy star making light work of life with a stoma
NOTTINGHAM comedian Matt Forde has issued a message of hope after adapting to life with a stoma.
The Nottingham-born comic and radio presenter had a cancerous tumour removed from the base of his spine in October last year.
The 41-year-old, who grew up in Sneinton, was doing stand-up at Edinburgh Festival last August when he felt agonising pain at the back of his left leg - which was initially thought to be a slipped disc.
His eventual bone cancer diagnosis was followed by a 13-hour operation, after which he was fitted with a stoma bag, which collects faeces and urine through an opening on the abdomen.
In an interview with BBC News, discussing reality star Louise Thompson’s social media posts about having a stoma bag, the comedian and lifelong Nottingham Forest fan said he had initially been fearful of the bag being fitted as part of his cancer treatment - but those fears were unfounded.
“It’s actually nowhere near as troublesome [as I thought] - I mean it’s actually very easy,” he said.
“I have to admit before I had one fitted I was gutted, I was slightly repulsed by it, and I had always been slightly freaked out by them.”
Matt joined charity Colostomyuk’s calls for people to talk openly about the medical procedure, explaining that his worries were partially fuelled by a lack of understanding of what using a stoma bag was like.
“I am just amazed at how easy it is, in many ways it makes life a bit easier, it’s not painful, they’re straightforward and it doesn’t change your life at all,” Matt said.
“I just wish I’d heard from people before I had that surgery because it can be really distressing going into surgery knowing you’re going to wake up with what feels like a very big change to your body, that’s permanent.
“But it is so easy to deal with and you know we all poo, some people do it round the back and an elite few of us poo out the front.”
Matt will return to his first gig since surgery at The Soho Theatre in London on May 18 as he continues his recovery. Matt, who’s also made a welcome return to his podcasting exploits, including Down The Dog with Jon Richardson, on which Matt’s spoken openly about his recovery from cancer, and his subsequent weight loss, added: “This is such a big event in my life that I’m sure it will lead to some comedy.”