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Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month was launched in style on Wednesday February 28th in the beautiful setting of One Great George Street, Westminster.
We were honoured to have The Rt Hon. Rosie Winterton MP, Minister of State for Health Services as our keynote speaker, and Ms Winterton announced funding of £46,000 for a symptoms awareness campaign to be targeted at GP surgeries across England during 2007. She spoke about the importance of public and GP awareness of ovarian cancer symptoms, and of combating the view that ovarian cancer is a silent killer. "This is why awareness work is so important. I am very pleased that Ovarian cancer action have been successful in securing grant funding for the delivery of a symptoms awareness campaign for this condition." Early diagnosis and awareness of symptoms and risk factors for cancer will form an important part of the new Cancer Reform Strategy which is currently being drawn together, and there would be important opportunities for sharing knowledge and skills.
Ovarian cancer action Chief Executive Annwen Jones and Chair of the Board of Directors Allyson Kaye welcomed guests including supporters of the charity, women who have survived the disease, and key figures from the Department of Health.
We were delighted so many survivors could attend
Our host for the evening was Sharon Hodgson, MP for Gateshead East and Washington East who spoke about her personal interest in cancer, which has made her passionate about fighting to improve women’s survival outcomes.
Other speakers included ovarian cancer survivor Fiona Lewis, who movingly recounted her own near death experience and how she now lives life to the full, thanks to her medical team which included Professor Hani Gabra.
Dr Sarah Jarvis, GP, broadcaster and spokesperson on women's health for the Royal College of General Practitioners said she remembered every single women with ovarian cancer she had ever treated, and that it was important to recognise early symptoms because it often was picked up too late, "Through health care professionals and women working together to detect ovarian cancer earlier there is a real chance of improved outcomes".
On the evening we also released shocking statistics about women's ignorance about ovarian cancer and its symptoms. Our survey, undertaken by Dr Foster Intelligence, revealed that the general public and women in particular are woefully ignorant of ovarian cancer and its associated symptoms with only 1 in 6 (16%) of women aware of ovarian cancer, this compares with more than 4 in 5 women (84%) who are aware of breast cancer, and women are more aware of the exclusively male cancers prostate and testicular than ovarian. For more details on this survey click here.