A new, online Ovarian Cancer Awareness Center is now available on Cancer.com to respond to recent research findings that show most Americans are uninformed about the risk factors, detection steps and new treatments available for ovarian cancer.
The urgent need for this information is confirmed by the latest statistics about ovarian cancer, which is now classified as the fifth most common cancer, other than skin cancer, in women. According to the National Cancer Institute, one in every 57 women in the United States will develop ovarian cancer. The American Cancer Society estimates that more than 25,400 women will be diagnosed with the illness this year alone, and another 14,300 women will die from it. Dispelling the myths about ovarian cancer and increasing access to credible, up-to-date information is therefore especially important in detecting this cancer early and increasing chances of survival.
Launched in support of Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month in September, Cancer.com's new Ovarian Cancer Awareness Center will serve as a gateway to more than a dozen ovarian cancer Web sites. These sites are operated by leading cancer advocacy organizations, professional societies, treatment institutions, and government agencies. All of these sites are arranged by topic area and represent the best science-based information available on the Internet about ovarian cancer.
"Numerous choices now exist for the management of early and relapsed ovarian cancer. It is important for patients to understand the current available treatments, available clinical trials and the various choices of agents that exist. Cancer.com provides the educational tools that patients require to understand their choices," said Dr. Susana M. Campos, an oncologist at the Dana Farber Cancer Institute and Brigham & Women's Hospital and an instructor of medicine at Harvard Medical School. "With so much information available today, Cancer.com has compiled a list of links to the most reliable ovarian cancer information and support sites -- it takes the fear and confusion out of searching the Web."