Cancer campaign: A lot to be said for keeping things simple

Clever marketing is one thing, but it shouldn’t offend the very people it is intending to support, writes Karen Funnell

So the Irish Cancer Society wants us to “get” cancer and has launched a “deliberately provocative” campaign that has certainly ruffled a few feathers.

The ads — on newspapers, TV and social media — show four different people — a middle-aged man and woman, a young surfer and a young woman in a relationship — all stating: “I want to get cancer”. So far, so controversial.