July 14, 2021 • 7 mins
Not even cancer can keep Alex Pledger away from the basketball court.
The former Tall Black and Breakers player is suiting up for the Southland Sharks tomorrow night in the New Zealand NBL, just three months after being diagnosed with colorectal cancer.
Pledger's likely to play a couple of minutes, but he doesn't have any expectations.
"Overall, pretty happy that I've got myself to a point where I can suit up and take to court."
He is encouraging Kiwis to get checked if things aren't quite right when going to the toilet.
Pledger says he's learnt that bowel cancer is uncommon for his age, but he's living proof that it's possible.
He says New Zealanders need to get rid of the 'she'll be right' attitude, and go to the doctor if you're worried.
"It's not an old person thing. The symptoms I was feeling don't automatically mean worst case scenario, but early detection is the best cure there is."
LISTEN ABOVE
The former Tall Black and Breakers player is suiting up for the Southland Sharks tomorrow night in the New Zealand NBL, just three months after being diagnosed with colorectal cancer.
Pledger's likely to play a couple of minutes, but he doesn't have any expectations.
"Overall, pretty happy that I've got myself to a point where I can suit up and take to court."
He is encouraging Kiwis to get checked if things aren't quite right when going to the toilet.
Pledger says he's learnt that bowel cancer is uncommon for his age, but he's living proof that it's possible.
He says New Zealanders need to get rid of the 'she'll be right' attitude, and go to the doctor if you're worried.
"It's not an old person thing. The symptoms I was feeling don't automatically mean worst case scenario, but early detection is the best cure there is."
LISTEN ABOVE
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Mark as Played
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
The Joe Rogan Experience
The official podcast of comedian Joe Rogan.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Special Summer Offer: Exclusively on Apple Podcasts, try our Dateline Premium subscription completely free for one month! With Dateline Premium, you get every episode ad-free plus exclusive bonus content.