Ten years ago I didn’t know very much about the color teal
or ovarian cancer. I did go for an annual Pap Test but that was the extent of
my knowledge of gynecologic cancers. Since my sister had been diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 42, I knew much more about pink and breast
cancer.
Then I was diagnosed with stage III ovarian cancer. At first
I was just too busy getting well to even think about the fact that I could do
something about being clueless about gynecologic cancers. But I finished chemotherapy, my hair grew in and I felt better. In 2006 the consensus
statement on ovarian cancer symptoms was published. Later that year when my
gynecologic oncologist suggested I contact a local ovarian cancer foundation
and get involved in raising awareness, I was finally ready. That September was the
first time I told my story. I talked about the symptoms of ovarian cancer with
other women and handed out symptom cards. It was also in September of that year that I joined with another family from my town to hang teal
ribbons on trees to raise awareness of ovarian cancer.
Awareness of gynecologic cancers and ovarian cancer in
particular has increased in the past 10 years but we have more work to do. There are still women, family members and
health care providers who need to be educated about the symptoms of gynecologic cancers, HPV, risk factors, and the need
for research to better understand the diseases and to find cures. Awareness efforts reach their
peak every September during Gynecologic Cancer Awareness Month (GCAM) . If you want
to help raise awareness you can wear teal, paint your toes teal, hang ribbons,
participate in walk/runs or chats and share symptoms via social media or the handy symptom cards offered by several awareness organizations. These are just a few of the ways you can get involved and spread the knowledge which all women need to know about gynecologic cancers.
Here are some online resources for GCAM that #gyncsm would
like to share with you.
Gynecologic Cancer:
#gyncsm Chat – September 9, 2015 at 9pm EST Topic: Gyn Cancer
Awareness Month with a Spotlight on Uterine/Endometrial Cancer
(gyncsm.blogspot.com)
Globethon to End Women’s Cancer – worldwide events http://globeathon.com/events/
GynCan- Gynecologic Cancer Awareness Network - http://www.gyncan.com/
Blogger/Social Media Challenge and Walk/Run 100 Miles in September
Foundation for Women’s Cancer http://www.foundationforwomenscancer.org/, Awareness Month Role of Hereditary Cancer Fact Sheet : http://www.foundationforwomenscancer.org/wp-content/uploads/GCAM-2015-Fact-Sheet5.pdf
Ovarian Cancer :
Ovarian Cancer National Alliance (OCNA) http://www.ovariancancer.org/
#30Days of Teal
Check their Partner Member Page links to partner member
websites and events.
National Ovarian Cancer Coalition (NOCC) - http://www.ovarian.org/ Check their website
for local walks http://ovarian.org/upcoming_walks.php
Ovarian Cancer Research Fund (OCRF) http://www.ocrf.org/
Wear Teal Day is Friday, September 4, 2015.
We would love to hear about the awareness
activities you will be participating in during September. Please tell us in the comment section of this page or share it with us (@gyncsm) on twitter.
Dee
Co-Founder and Co-Moderator #gyncsm community
Co-Founder and Co-Moderator #gyncsm community
