Paying it forward: 10 second test the difference between young father's life or death

Ant Ward says discovering he had Bowel Cancer was the best thing - any later and it could have been a lot worse. Photo / Supplied

The Herald speaks with Kiwis who have been on the edge of death, had their world tipped upside down, overcome their darkest moments and are now moving forward.

An Auckland father-of-two is raising awareness for bowel cancer after his shocking diagnosis changed his life.

For Ant Ward, opting to get a "10 second test" was the difference between life and death - and he wants everyone to know it.

Taking part in Decembeard was just one of the ways Ward has been getting his message out there.

He was able to raise more than $4000 in less than a month and more importantly help change the stigma about getting health checks.

"Like a lot of men, getting checked was something I put off but one quick test and very quickly the specialist was able to tell me it was cancer.

"Guys get funny because they have to poke something up there but when you go and do it you think 'was that it'?," Ward told the Herald.

He said if he had been diagnosed later his outcome would have been a lot worse.

After getting more tests Ward discovered his cancer had spread and he was quickly rushed into surgery before undergoing 12 rounds of chemotherapy over 24 weeks.

"I went through everything going fantastic with life, my family was great and my business was thriving, to being chucked into this foreign environment.

"Up until that point I felt like I had control over but when you go through these medical procedures there is no fine art answer and that was difficult."

But in the end it changed him for the better.

"Going to the gym used to be my stress relief but after getting diagnosed I started spend more time with my kids and I found slowing down actually helped calm me down."

After chemo, scans showed the cancer had gone.

"I will never know if it has completely gone and it could come back up. I will keep getting checked and live my life with purpose."

He said he had become passionate about getting men talking about their health.

"When you go through something like I did it really puts things in perspective."