Former North Queensland Cowboys recruitment boss Dane Campbell diagnosed with cancer

Former Cowboys recruitment boss opens up about his shock battle with bowel cancer.

Mater Private Hospital Townsville colorectal surgeon Associate Professor Shin Sakata with North Queensland Cowboys recruitment boss Dane Campbell, a former NRL player. Picture: Supplied

Former North Queensland Cowboys recruitment boss Dane Campbell has opened up about his shock battle with stage-four bowel cancer.

The otherwise healthy former NRL player, aged just 42, said he had a sudden, one-off episode that caused concern.

He said he felt a sudden urge to go to the bathroom because of what he thought was an upset stomach.

“But I randomly happened to look down and it was all blood,” he said.

“That was a massive concern, especially given I’d had no other symptoms and was feeling fit and healthy.”

His GP had initially suspected haemorrhoids, but referred the father-of-two for a colonoscopy.

“I came out of the colonoscopy and was asked to stick around – that’s when I started to realise something was wrong,” he said.

“I was told that I had a cancer in my rectum – the news smashed me in the face pretty hard.”

In 2024, Dane Campbell with Henry Teutau after he signed a two-year extension with the club. Picture: Inventus

Mater Private Hospital Townsville colorectal surgeon Associate Professor Shin Sakata successfully removed the cancer by performing a minimally invasive, robotic, ultra-low anterior resection.

He said the location of the cancer meant that the entire rectum had to be removed, which would traditionally require a large incision and a temporary stoma bag.

“In Dane’s case, I used the DaVinci Xi robot – a great example of the state-of-the-art surgical technology we have at Mater Private Hospital Townsville,” he said.

“The operation was smooth sailing, and I was able to avoid giving Dane a stoma bag.”

Follow-up scans revealed a spot on Mr Campbell’s liver, which led to a liver lobectomy and six months of chemotherapy.

Dane Campbell played for Newcastle in the early 2000s. AAP Image/Action Photographics/Craig Coulton

Mr Campbell said they were having a “red-hot crack” at eliminating the stage-four cancer.

Around 15,000 people are diagnosed with bowel cancer every year and there are more than 5,000 deaths, making it Australia’s second deadliest cancer.

Australia also has the highest rate of bowel cancer in the world in people under 50, which now account for around one in nine cases being diagnosed.

June is Bowel Cancer Awareness Month and Dr Sakata is urging the public to not to be complacent.

“We are seeing a recent rise in bowel cancer cases among young people like Dane,” he said.

Red flags include a change in bowel habits, unexplained weight loss, abdominal pain, fatigue and blood in the stool.

Mr Campbell said that despite his diagnosis, he felt as though he was in a good place.

“I joke about it, but the reality is that all the things you know to be true – like eating well, exercising regularly, mindfulness – I think all of those things I’m doing more habitually and as a result I have a pretty positive outlook on beating this.”

Originally published as Former North Queensland Cowboys recruitment boss Dane Campbell diagnosed with cancer