Teal Is Personal: Why We Fight for Women with Ovarian Cancer

When I joined the Ovarian Cancer National Alliance last fall, I had no personal history with this disease. That changed rapidly as I began to meet and work with survivors, their families and health professionals in the field. Today, teal—the color of ovarian cancer awareness—is deeply personal to me. Throughout this month, the Disruptive Women in Health Care blog will feature four women whose lives have been touched by ovarian cancer. They include survivors, caregivers and advocates working with us to change the course of this disease. Ovarian cancer takes a devastating toll on women who develop the disease. About 22,000 women will be diagnosed this year, and one in four of them will lose her life within a year of her diagnosis. Those numbers are frightening. They aren’t fun to talk about. But they reflect the reality of a condition that is difficult to detect and difficult to treat when the disease is advanced. September is National Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month. We’ve all gotten used to awareness months, weeks and days—but I urge you not to tune this one out. Ovarian cancer is a frightening disease, but there are signs of hope, including promising new research about a screening method—something we currently lack. How are we working to change the tide? One critical area is research, which could lead to an early detection test and better treatments for women who have ovarian cancer. Federal funding is essential for our cause, as 90 percent of nonprofit ovarian ca...
Source: Disruptive Women in Health Care - Category: Health Medicine and Bioethics Commentators Authors: Tags: Advocacy Cancer Uncategorized Women's Health Source Type: blogs