LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) As the first former University of Kansas football player to come out as gay, Brad Thorson knows that talking about sex can be awkward and intimidating.
But he also knows the health dangers that can come from not talking about it.
Theres a lot of shame still in getting STIs (sexually transmitted infections), Thorson said. We treat things like mono(nucleosis) as sort of a rite of passage in high school … but we really come down hard on somebody who gets something like chlamydia or gonorrhea.
The reason its so prevalent is that the testing rate is too low and were not treating it, he said.
Thorson, who played at KU from 2008-2010 and now lives in New York City, recently launched a business to regularly ship STI test kits, condoms and lubricants to peoples homes a monthly box subscription service for sexual health. Its called Kalamos Care, the Kansas City Star reported.
The goal is partly to help people get tested regularly without as many embarrassing or invasive trips to the doctor or lab. But its also to make the regular testing a normal part of life for people who are sexually active, in the hopes that theyll feel more comfortable talking openly with partners and doctors.
Erasing the shame that may have been instilled in somebody because of early (sex) education or certain community groups they were part of, Thorson said, because thats a huge barrier in not only combating STIs but also making sure people have a positive and healthy sex life.
Other at-home test kit companies, like myLAB Box, have launched in recent years, but Thorson said those are more for one-time use, aimed at people who have an occasional STI scare. Kalamos is intended for those who want to take a more proactive approach, he said.
Statistics suggest theres a need for much more testing.
Cases of both gonorrhea and syphilis have surged in the Kansas City area in recent years.
Kaiser Health News reported in April that syphilis is spiking statewide in Missouri, with cases quadrupling between 2012 and 2018. Rates are rising particularly fast in rural parts of the state, the nonprofit news site said. Rates are up in Kansas as well, though not as sharply.
Lesha Dennis, an epidemiology specialist who studies STIs for the Kansas City Health Department, said syphilis, gonorrhea and chlamydia rates all increased nationally last year.
That was for the first time in a long time, Dennis said. And it also is happening locally.
Dennis said the syphilis outbreak in particular has been linked to drug use, which tends to increase risky behaviors like having unprotected sex with multiple partners. Such people may be unlikely to purchase home testing kits, she said.
If you are, in fact, using meth, thats probably going to be low on your list of things to do, Dennis said.
