Peer Support / Woman to Woman
OCRA’s Woman to Woman (W2W) Peer Mentor program is unlike any other support offered for individuals impacted by a gynecologic cancer. The program provides patients, survivors, or loved ones with a trained Mentor who has a similar personal experience with gynecologic cancer and can share their own insights and perspective. These trained W2W Mentors are available to connect from the moment of diagnosis through the end of treatment and beyond. W2W Mentors are here to ensure that you are not alone.
“I feel that the most precious things we can give to one another along this journey are support and encouragement, and my relationships have deepened my own feelings of inspiration and assurance.”
Teresa, W2W Mentor
How W2W Mentors Can Help
Mentors meet with you – whether by phone, video call, or in person – to listen, discuss your concerns, share their own experiences, offer support, and sometimes, just hold your hand. Mentors are carefully matched based on your specific concerns, and by factors like diagnosis, age, language, culture, and familial role. They are professionally trained and supervised by a Coordinator (typically a licensed social worker or nurse practitioner) who also oversees the program. Through training, Mentors learn active listening, communication skills, and methods for addressing your concerns without giving medical advice. Mentors inspire hope and offer the kind of unique insights that can only come from someone who has experienced their own cancer journey. Their support can be invaluable as you start treatment or adjust to life after diagnosis.
Thinking of Becoming a W2W Mentor?
To become a W2W Mentor, please complete a Mentor application. Upon acceptance to the program, new W2W Mentors first participate in an intense training session, where they receive an overview of the complex issues associated with gynecologic cancers. Mentors often gain a deeper understanding of their own relationship to their or their loved one’s illness, as they prepare to step into the Mentor role. Patients, survivors, and loved ones of those impacted by gynecologic cancer may apply to be W2W Mentors.
History
Woman to Woman was founded by ovarian cancer survivor Valerie Goldfein at the Mount Sinai Medical Center in 2004. Recognizing the importance of peer support, Ovarian Cancer Research Alliance (OCRA) was a long-time supporter of W2W at Mount Sinai, and in 2011 expanded the program nationally as OCRA’s signature support program.
Since then, OCRA has supported the development of over 50 program sites. Today, there are 28 active Woman to Woman sites nationwide, including a large national team of OCRA Woman to Woman Mentors to ensure all those impacted by ovarian and gynecologic cancer, regardless of location, can connect with a Mentor who has shared a similar experience.
Woman to Woman is generously supported in part by grants from:
Our Community
I am so grateful to have been part of the Woman to Woman program, you helped me get through it more than you can imagine!
I’m tremendously optimistic for the future as I see how this program helps patients and their families. Peer to peer support is the key to improving patients’ quality of life.