OVARIAN CANCER AWARENESS MONTH TO BE DECLARED

HARRISBURG, JUNE 29 – Approximately 28,580 women in the United States will be diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 2004 and an estimated 16,090 will die from the disease. State Sen. Connie Williams Monday introduced a resolution to increase awareness of this type of cancer.

“Most people know very little about the disease,” Williams said. “If it is caught in its earliest stages, it can be treated, but late stage diagnoses can cut a woman’s survival rate in half. This is why education and awareness of the disease is so important.”

Williams’ resolution, which was unanimously adopted, declares the month of September 2004 as Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month in Pennsylvania.

“Instead of losing women to this disease each year, we could extend their lives using today’s technology, but it takes increased awareness and education about the disease,” Williams said. “People, especially women, need to be better educated about the risks and symptoms of this particular type of cancer, which is the fifth most common cancer in women and ranks fourth as the cause of cancer death in women.”

A woman’s risk of being diagnosed with ovarian cancer is one in 57. Breast cancer survivors – especially those 50 and older – are at an even higher risk of developing the disease.