I’m Daniel. I’m an entertainer, a health advocate, and an anal cancer survivor.

I think one of the reasons that people are so hesitant to talk about anal cancer is the stigma and shame that comes with it. People hear “cancer” and it’s “ahh.” But then they hear “anal cancer,” they’re like, “oh.” They wonder what I did, how it happened.

In the Latino community, we don’t talk about cancers as much. In the gay community there’s also a lot of shame, a lot of secrecy.

The symptoms were so similar to other things that could happen in my body, that it was really easy to misdiagnose.

There are times when I’m very open about it, and there are times when I have to just limit to saying, “I had cancer.”

Break through the stigma, the shame. Talk about it. Get screened. Talk to your doctor. It’s your life.