Cubism – Cube Blog

If someone asked you to drive a rusty old car worth less than your TV set, don an Akubra and drive 3,500kms through the 45®C unforgiving Australian outback on just $500 worth of petrol, would you say yes? Well someone from Cube did, and for a good reason – to raise funds for Cancer Council NSW.

People from around the world are coming together to take part in the inaugural Sh*tbox Rally this month to raise funds for Cancer Council NSW. On 20 March, 17 teams will each drive an old car of less than $1,000 value – in other words, a sh*tbox – 3,500 kms from Sydney to Alice Springs. The challenge is to get there in one piece – both the cars and the participants!

The 2010 Shitbox Rally Route

From the gateway of the outback at Nyngan, to Broken Hill, up the Oodnadatta Track, onto Uluru/Ayres Rock and finishing in Alice Springs, the Rally will incorporate some of the most challenging roads in Australia. Participants range from their early 20’s to late 30’s and herald from the UK, Hong Kong as well as various states across Australia including VIC, QLD, NSW and SA.

One of Cube’s very own employees, Polly Lutter, is taking part: “The challenge will be to ensure our old car reaches the destination in one piece whilst raising as much money as possible. Sadly, we all know someone who has been affected by cancer and I wanted to raise awareness of the wonderful work done by the Cancer Council of NSW. It’s also a great way to see some of this amazing country whilst ‘roughing it’ a little along the way!”

Organiser and founder of the Sh*tbox Rally, James Freeman, who recently lost both his parents as well as his brother (five years ago) to cancer, hopes not only to raise funds for Cancer Council NSW, but also help support the greater community of people the disease affects. “Like me, the type of people that are doing the Rally want to make a bigger and more meaningful contribution to the fight against cancer.” 

Cancer Council NSW funds vital cancer research, prevention, information and support services like the Cancer Council Helpline. Help the team reach their fundraising goal by donating online at Everyday Hero.

Have you ever found yourself reaching for your keyboard to research an ailment you are convinced you are a perfect candidate for? “Feeling fatigued? Check! Some weight gain? Yes! General muscle pain? That confirms it, I have contracted an incurable disease,” you hear yourself say.

If this is vaguely familiar, consider yourself an active contributor to a nation of ‘cyberchondriacs.’

Most of us will admit to Googling ‘[name of an exotic/obscure illness] + symptoms’ following a late night viewing of Medical Mysteries – but are Aussies taking their health too lightly by substituting doctor with .com?

New research from research company TNS found that 1 in 4 Australians will search the internet for medical advice to self-diagnose and even treat themselves. Over a quarter of this group feel that they are able to diagnose and treat an ailment without the need of a healthcare professional.

Considering ‘pregnancy’ and ‘cancer’ are the top two Googled health conditions (generating around 7.7 million search queries each month) and the fact that anyone can publish anything online (Wikipedia, anyone?) – these findings are somewhat concerning. 

A recent HCF survey also reveals that Gen Y and women are the most common web medicos. Could this be because more than half of those aged 18-34 said they were too embarrassed to talk to a GP?

Searching for health information online

Both TNS and the Australian Medical Association (AMA) agree that while the internet has its uses, those searching for health information must be careful. People may be at risk of diagnosing non-existent symptoms and possibly using treatments which may not be appropriate.

So, next time a mystery illness on hospital drama House prompts you to e-diagnose, remember to take the information with a grain of salt and speak to your pharmacist or GP                                                                                                     if you have concerns.

The rise and rise of swine flu

Despite continued Global media coverage, swine flu seems to be in decline within Australia, or at least within manageable limits.

The media first coined the phrase ‘swine flu’ back in April this year after a new strain of influenza containing genetic fragments of swine, bird and human viruses was detected. The WHO declared a Global pandemic in June after the number of infections reached 28,774 in 74 countries, including 144 deaths.

Whilst the potential impact of new, fast moving viral strains can rarely be quantified, it has to be said that everyone likes a good health ‘scare’. A random Google search for ‘swine flu’ today came up with over 34 million hits, the vast majority being media coverage. Yet much of the online buzz was propelled by social networking sites with swine flu rating as a trending topic on Twitter for several weeks.

At the time of this blog post, the death toll in Australia is said to have reached 128, with 460 in hospital and 94 of them in intensive care. However within Australia at least, the virus is now perceived to be manageable. Health officials announced last week that vaccinations may start within the month, making Australia the first country to begin mass vaccination against the H1N1 virus.

The swine flu ‘buzz’ continues due to the ongoing impact overseas. Just today, in a bid to halt the spread of the virus, the mayor of a small French town banned spitting and wrote to football chiefs to demand that footballers who spit be sent off, putting the issue back on the front page.

As the northern hemisphere goes into the winter flu season the swine flu ‘noise’ is set to continue, circulating via the global media. Potential new strains, mass vaccination and a resurgence of other influenza viruses like bird flu may add further fuel to the fire.

One thing is for sure – this health story is not going away anytime soon.