Speaker Details

Mr Russ Gluyas

Russ is the Program Coordinator for Ageing at ACON. ACON is an NSW based community organisation delivering programs for people living with HIV and people who are sexuality and gender diverse. ACON’s ageing initiative is the LOVE Project or Living Older Visibly and Engaged. The project supports older lesbian, gay, bi+, trans and queer (LGBTQ) people to lead healthy, active and more socially connected lives.

Russ joins us today as a consumer. Russ was diagnosed with HPV related Head and Neck Cancer on the 3rd of July 2019. By the end of July, Russ had received two surgeries. The first to remove 35 lymph nodes from the right side of his neck. The second using robotics to remove his right tonsil and some of the inside of his mouth around the tonsil. Then six weeks of radiation to help eradicate any residue. 

Russ acknowledges the intersectionality's with his personal and professional worlds. Russ celebrated his 60^th birthday last December, is openly gay using the pronouns he/him, and has lived with HIV for 34 years. Russ has only recently stepped into talking about and sharing his cancer experience. Russ aims to highlight some of the challenges for someone who is sexually diverse, lives with a stigmatised health issue, faces ageism and wants to be sex positive as he gets older.

Russ continues to heal, receives positive progress reviews and is grateful to have come through his experience.