News

Partner Member Profile

Partner Member Profile

June 26, 2014

2015 marks the 15th anniversary of the Wisconsin Ovarian Cancer Alliance (WOCA), a Partner Member organization dedicated to overcoming ovarian cancer through education, advocacy, and awareness. When oncology nurse Joan Sagan was diagnosed with stage 3C ovarian cancer in 1999, she, along with sisters Kelli Zembruski and Sandi Wagner, realized there was an immediate need for ovarian cancer education in their home state of Wisconsin. While Joan knew from her role as an oncology nurse how devastating this disease can be, Kelli and Sandi knew very little about ovarian cancer. At this point, ovarian cancer was still known as the silent killer, with no symptom awareness. In May 2000, the Wisconsin Ovarian Cancer Alliance was officially founded, with the mission to educate the community about ovarian cancer and raise awareness about this horrible disease. Click the plus sign to read more.

Community

Palliative Care at Time of Cancer Diagnosis Improves Survival

Palliative Care at Time of Cancer Diagnosis Improves Survival

June 25, 2014

(June 25, 2014) Research presented at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology earlier this month suggests that palliative care delivered at the time of cancer diagnosis improves survival. A randomized trial of palliative oncology care in 207 patients with advanced cancer and their caregivers showed that the risk of death at … Continued

Research

Gemcitabine, Carboplatin, and Bevacizumab Extend PFS

Gemcitabine, Carboplatin, and Bevacizumab Extend PFS

June 24, 2014

(June 24, 2014) Earlier this month, researchers reported results of a Phase II trial which looked at efficacy and safety of a biweekly gemcitabine, carboplatin, and bevacizumab combination in patients with platinum-sensitive recurrent ovarian, peritoneal, or tubal cancer. The results, which were published online June 5, 2014 in the journal Gynecologic Oncology, showed that biweekly … Continued

Research

Webinar Highlights Research News from ASCO

Webinar Highlights Research News from ASCO

June 20, 2014

On Monday, June 16, 2014, Dr. Douglas Levine of Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center presented a free webinar focusing on research  news that was presented at 2014’s medical meetings.  In his hour-long presentation, he focused primarily on new ovarian cancer research that was presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology’s annual meeting, which took … Continued

Research

Report from the 2014 American Society of Clinical Oncology ...

Report from the 2014 American Society of Clinical Oncology Annual Meeting

June 17, 2014

Promising new combination treatments for ovarian cancer Dr. Joyce Liu, MD, on behalf of researchers from the National Cancer Institute (NCI) and Dana Farber Cancer Institute (DFCI), presented striking results from a Phase II trial testing the combination of the PARP inhibitor olaparib and the anti-angiogenesis drug cediranib (which blocks tumors from creating new blood … Continued

Advocacy

What's in Kelly's Bag?

What's in Kelly's Bag?

June 10, 2014

Kelly Ripa Stars in Public Service Announcements for “QVC Presents Super Saturday LIVE,” Benefitting Ovarian Cancer Research Fund WEST CHESTER, Pa. (June 10, 2014) – Kelly Ripa is shopping to save lives as she fills up her bag with designer deals that will contribute to the cure for ovarian cancer. Ripa, one of the most … Continued

OCRA News

Press Release: Cancer Advocates Debunk Huckabee’s Misleadin...

Press Release: Cancer Advocates Debunk Huckabee’s Misleading Comments on Oral Contraceptives

June 6, 2014

Posted by adavis on January 24, 2014 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 24, 2014 Washington, DC—In response to a recent speech by Mike Huckabee, in which he stated that women use oral contraceptives because they “cannot control their libidos or their reproductive systems,” the Ovarian Cancer National Alliance issued the following statement from CEO Calaneet Balas: “In his quest … Continued

OCRA News

2014 ASCO Research Round-Up

2014 ASCO Research Round-Up

June 6, 2014

Posted by Laura Koontz on June 5, 2014 The 50th Annual Conference of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, held May 30 – June 3 in Chicago, featured a number of promising and thought provoking studies on ovarian cancer. Below is a brief summary of the most notable studies from the meeting. In the coming weeks, we’ll also post … Continued

Advocacy

ASCO News: Two New Drugs Show Promise for Recurrent Ovarian...

ASCO News: Two New Drugs Show Promise for Recurrent Ovarian Cancer

June 4, 2014

(June 4, 2014) In a study presented at the American Society of Clinical Oncology annual meeting last week, researchers found that the combination of olaparib and cediranib (Recentin) kept recurrent ovarian cancer from worsening for almost nine months longer than treatment with olaparib alone. For this study, 90 women with recurrent ovarian cancer that was … Continued

Research

Partner Member Profile: Caring Together

Partner Member Profile: Caring Together

May 31, 2014

Partnership is a word you’ll hear often from the board members of Caring Together, a Partner Member of the Alliance in eastern New York. The support group was organized in 1996 by a survivor and nurse practitioner named Debbie Cullinan. “As the support group continued to grow, women and their families had a strong desire … Continued

Community

FDA Seeking Comments on Olaparib by June 11

FDA Seeking Comments on Olaparib by June 11

May 22, 2014

The Food and Drug Administration is seeking comments by June 11, 2014 on its review for Olaparib approval. Olaparib is an oral poly ADP-ribose polymerase (PARP) inhibitor that exploits DNA repair pathway deficiencies to preferentially kill cancer cells.  AstraZeneca, the company that manufactures the drug, has submitted an application to the FDA for approval of … Continued

Research

Breastfeeding, Birth Control Pills May Reduce Ovarian Cance...

Breastfeeding, Birth Control Pills May Reduce Ovarian Cancer Risk Among Women with BRCA Gene Mutations

May 16, 2014

(May 16, 2014) Breastfeeding, tubal ligation – also known as having one’s “tubes tied” – and oral contraceptives may lower the risk of ovarian cancer for some women with BRCA gene mutations, according to a comprehensive analysis from a team at the University of Pennsylvania’s Basser Research Center for BRCA. The Basser Research Center for … Continued

Research