A Personal Connection Becomes a Professional Mission
A Personal Connection Becomes a Professional Mission
Ivan Garcia-Bassets, Ph.D., a 2012 OCRF Grantee, changed his research focus to ovarian cancer after his wife received a devastating diagnosis.
News
Hospice Reimbursement May Disincentivize Care for Expensive...
Hospice Reimbursement May Disincentivize Care for Expensive Patients
A study by the Commonwealth Foundation found that patients with expensive treatment, such as palliative chemotherapy, were more likely to be turned away from hospice facilities. Some findings include The study found 61 percent of hospices would not accept patients who wanted chemotherapy, which can be used to help ease their pain in their dying … Continued
Common Diabetes Drug May Boost Ovarian Cancer Survival
Common Diabetes Drug May Boost Ovarian Cancer Survival
12/03/2012 Researchers at the Mayo Clinic have shown that ovarian cancer patients who were taking the common diabetes drug metformin survived longer than patients who weren’t on the drug. The research was published online in the journal Cancer. Two former OCRF grantees, Jeremy Chien, PhD, and Ramandeep Rattan, PhD, were among the paper’s authors. While metformin (also called Glucophage) … Continued
Partner Member Profile: Michigan Ovarian Cancer Alliance
Partner Member Profile: Michigan Ovarian Cancer Alliance
When Pam Dahlmann’s mother was diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 2009—40 years after her own mother passed away from the disease—both women quickly learned that there were no ovarian cancer organizations in Michigan. “My mom and I were both University of Michigan nursing graduates,” says Pam, “We really wanted to make a difference for other … Continued
Expanding Medicaid Could Help Women with Ovarian Cancer
Expanding Medicaid Could Help Women with Ovarian Cancer
Many people who live near the poverty line are surprised to learn that they do not qualify for health insurance under Medicaid. Each state sets its own rules for this program, based on income and other qualifying factors. This may soon change, thanks to a provision in the health reform law that encourages states to … Continued
Supreme Court to Hear Gene Patent Case
Supreme Court to Hear Gene Patent Case
The Supreme Court of the United States will hear arguments in a case seeking to invalidate the patents on the BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutations. The patent-holder, Myriad Laboratories, owns patents on the genetic mutations themselves. The Alliance has joined the suit, led by the ACLU. Read the ACLU’s press release here
Ovarian Cancer Research Fund Announces National Expansion w...
Ovarian Cancer Research Fund Announces National Expansion with Ovarian Cycle
Indoor cycling nonprofit organization increases OCRF’s athletic fundraising events nationwide New York, NY November 28, 2012 –Ovarian Cancer Research Fund has acquired Ovarian Cycle, an indoor cycling nonprofit organization founded in 2004 in Atlanta, GA. Ovarian Cycle began with forty indoor cycling enthusiasts and a common mission, to fund ovarian cancer research, and to honor … Continued
Physiological Evidence of "Cancer Brain" Found
Physiological Evidence of "Cancer Brain" Found
Using PET/CT scans, researchers looked at the brain function of 128 breast cancer patients. The study aimed to show that PET/CT is a useful tool to measure the presence of chemo brain. Read the abstract here and an article on the study here
OCRF Research Finds MicroRNAs Convert Normal Cells into Can...
OCRF Research Finds MicroRNAs Convert Normal Cells into Cancer Promoters
11/27/2012 Research funded by Ovarian Cancer Research Fund, and published in Cancer Discovery, sheds new light on the molecular changes that convert harmless cells surrounding ovarian cancer cells into cells that promote tumor growth and metastasis. These cancer-supporting cells provide a novel target for treatment. The study’s lead author, Anirban Mitra, PhD, was funded by and … Continued
HHS Releases Health Reform Rules
HHS Releases Health Reform Rules
On Tuesday, the Department of Health and Human Services released three regulations related to implementation of health reform. One of these rules concerned guaranteed issue and a ban on pre-existing condition exclusion for adults. To learn more about these regulations see the article here The 131 pages of regulations can be found here
NIH to Enforce Public Access Policy
NIH to Enforce Public Access Policy
As a condition of receiving public monies for research, the researchers must make available the results of their work. The National Institutes of Health will begin to delay grants to those who do not comply with this policy. When a bill was introduced to cripple this policy, the Alliance worked with the patient advocacy community … Continued
Study Reveals New Mechanism of Action for PARP Inhibitors
Study Reveals New Mechanism of Action for PARP Inhibitors
11/14/2012 Researchers at the National Cancer Institute have discovered a new way in which PARP inhibitors block cancer cell growth. They also discovered that three experimental PARP inhibitors vary widely in their ability to kill cancer cells. PARP inhibitors are a class of drugs that have shown promising results against ovarian cancer in women with … Continued