Creating awareness!
A picture of Executive Director Doug Barron’s mother-in-law sits on his desk at the Georgia Ovarian Cancer Alliance office in Sandy Springs. Underneath it says, “If only we knew,” a reference to her untimely death from the disease because the diagnosis came too late.
“There’s no test or vaccine for ovarian cancer like the Pap test for cervical cancer, and the symptoms— repeated urinary tract infections, fatigue, bloating—are so similar to those frequently experienced by women that cancer is at the bottom of the doctor’s list,” says Barron whose mother-in-law had symptoms for several years. “At Stage 4, when most of the cases are finally diagnosed, the survival rate is only 20%. Our objective is to create awareness and get women diagnosed and into treatment at the early stages to give them a fighting chance.”
In March, GOCA held its annual Shaken, Not Stirred Gala at the Georgia Aquarium with more than 400 in attendance. The event raised $295,000 to further increase exposure throughout the state to encourage women to question their doctors when other treatments fail. One of the organization’s biggest supporters is Les Dames d’Escoffier, women in culinary professions who prepared the meal. “They lost a founding member to ovarian cancer, and we named an award in her honor,” says Barron.
GEORGIA OVARIAN CANCER ALLIANCE
caovariancancer.org
@gaovariancancer.org
