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Had a birthday celebration with a beautiful little princess, Mady. She let me throw the confetti twice. I think I had as much fun as she did. #StJude pic.twitter.com/BP04nLNXH9

— Chadwick Boseman (@chadwickboseman) September 12, 2018

Boseman's death at age 43 made him two years younger than 45, the age at which the American Cancer Society recommends men start getting screened for colon cancer. The CDC recommends that screening for colon cancer should begin at age 50.

In addition to risk factors, the American Cancer Society cites Black men having less access to screenings and health care as a reason for their higher rates of colon cancer.

Timothy Mitchell is a Black man who was diagnosed with stage 3 colon cancer in 2006 at age 43, just like Boseman.

He underwent 12 rounds of chemotherapy and today he and his wife dedicate their efforts to breaking down health stigmas for Black men that starts with a simple conversation.

\"Early detection is key,\" Mitchell told \"Good Morning America.\" \"Not paying attention to your body and not taking care of your body, it can really end sooner than you wanted it to because tomorrow is not promised.\"

Though colon cancer may not display any symptoms at all, which is why experts stress the importance of screenings, symptoms may include blood in stool, stomach pain, aches, or cramps that don’t go away and unexplained weight loss, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

\"If you are under the age of 50, and you are having symptoms -- and the most common symptom is rectal bleeding -- it is so important that you discuss these symptoms with your doctors so that you can get evaluated,\" said Mendelsohn. \"I think it's important to take away that stigma and to really understand that it's okay to talk about this.\"

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