Vilim Pezelj has lived with two stomas since 2021. His health issues began with prostate problems, which later developed into a bowel tumour. He woke up after the operation with two stomas on his abdomen.
Fifty years old, as he explained, he had not had any health problems or pain. But one morning he woke up with severe pain. He says he has accepted the stomas as normal, and today he manages everything independently. At first, he was helped greatly by his son, who lives and works in Germany, while his mother, who is older, lives nearby but is unable to care for him. He received professional assistance and learned how to live with a stoma.
Pezelj came to Korzo to celebrate the International Day of People with Stomas with his friends from the ILCO Rijeka Association. The day was marked in Rijeka, Krk, and Delnice, with the celebration involving a public health campaign focused on prevention, early detection of the disease, and support for people living with a stoma. At the information stands, residents could receive information on bowel cancer prevention, the association's work, and support options for people with stomas, while donations were being collected for the association's work.
The event was organised by the ILCO Rijeka Association in collaboration with the Primorsko-Gorska County Cancer League, the Institute of Public Health of Primorsko-Goriska County, nurses from the Primorsko-Goriska County Health Centre, the Delnice branch of the Croatian Red Cross, students from the Rijeka Medical School, and members of the association. The secretary of the ILRI Association, Arijana Puž, highlighted that people with stomas often face fear, shame, and stigma, which is why the association organises psychological workshops, public debates, and various educational activities.
Specialist in public health at the Institute of Public Health, Iva Sorta-Biljani Turina, warned that bowel and rectal cancer are among the most common malignant diseases. In Croatia, approximately 3,800 new cases are recorded annually, and according to the latest data from the Croatian Cancer Registry, 1,933 people died from the disease in 2024, including 1,136 men. In Primorsko-Goriska County, 152 people died from the disease in 2024.
The national programme for the early detection of bowel and rectal cancer is designed to detect the disease early. As part of the programme's improvement, a simpler test for occult blood in the stool was introduced, taking two samples instead of the previous three. During the pilot project in Zagreb, participation reached 60 per cent, while nationally, participation is currently around 30 per cent. The Primorsko-Porto region introduced a programme for the early detection of bowel and rectal cancer in 2006, and in 2008, it became a national programme.
The initiative was supported by the deputy county prefect Robert Matić, the head of the Health Department of the Primorsko-Goriska County, Vesna Čavar, the president of the Croatian Cancer League, Ira Pavlović-Ruž, and the project leader for Rijeka – Healthy City, Jovan Mandić.
