UPCOMING EVENTS

SURVIVORS TEACHNING STUDENTS

Rhonda’s Club will be training new speakers for Survivors Teaching Students: Saving Women’s Lives ® on Saturday, June 28 from 11:00 to 3:00 at the Potomac Community Center at 11315 Falls Road near the intersection with River Road in Potomac, Maryland.  We will help you tell your story in your own words.  No previous public speaking experience is necessary.  Once you are trained, your participation in STS is determined by your availability.  Many survivors have found STS to be an effective way to get their message out to future doctors in the hope that the disease can be detected earlier and more lives saved.

Survivors Teaching Students (STS) is a national outreach program sponsored by the Ovarian Cancer National Alliance (OCNA) to raise awareness of ovarian cancer symptoms and risks among medical students.  As a partner member of OCNA, Rhonda’s Club meets year-round with students at Georgetown, George Washington and Johns Hopkins medical schools.  At each class, three ovarian cancer survivors, assisted by a moderator, share their personal cancer journeys and answer questions from the students.  The response to this program has been overwhelmingly positive from both medical students and survivors.

To register, please contact Fran Stolusky at warren.fran@verizon.net

A Radioshow for Cancer Patients

Listen to "Frankly Speaking About Cancer" every Tuesday at 4pm eastern time (1pm pacific time). The host is Kim Thiboldeaux, President and CEO of the Cancer Support Community, stives to empower her listeners to live well with cancer. Click here to visit the website. You can also find past episodes available for listening!

OGCC/RHONDA'S CLUB ACTIVITIES

CALENDAR 
LOOK FOR RHONDA’S CLUB AT THESE UPCOMING EVENTS!

JULY

July 11-July 14: Ovarian Cancer National Alliance 16th Annual Conference.  Register at www.ovariancancer.org

Saturday, July 19:  Kettering/Largo/Mitchelville Family Community Day & Health Fair at Largo High School (505 Largo Road, Upper Marlboro, MD) from 1:00 to 7:00.

SEPTEMBER IS GYNECOLOGIC CANCER AWARENESS MONTH

Sunday, September 7:  Globeathon an international movement to raise awareness of women’s cancers.  Details at www.globeathon.com

Wednesday, September 10:  “Knowledge is Power: Gynecologic Health” a seminar sponsored by Sibley Memorial Hospital, Medical Building, Conference Room 2 from 6:30 to 8:30.  Call 202-243-2320 for details.

Sunday, September 14:  3rd Annual Survivors Tea sponsored by Rhonda’s Club at Ris restaurant (2275 L St, NW, Washington, DC) from 2:00 to 4:00.  See www.rhondasclub.org for details.

Monday, September 29:  Rock, Paper, Cocktails, a multi-vendor sale of jewelry and gifts to benefit gynecologic cancer research.  At Hotel Monaco, Old Town Alexandria at 6:00.

view our calendar of events >

MEDICAL NEWS

New Study Confirms Importance of Treatment by Gynecologic Oncologists

New research presented at the annual meeting of the Society of Gynecologic Oncologists in early March confirmed the critical importance of seeking treatment for ovarian cancer from a gynecologic oncologist.  The study, led by Dr. Robert E. Bristow, found most women with ovarian cancer receive less than optimal care because they see doctors who do not specialize in treating ovarian cancer. The five-year survival rate and disease-free intervals of patients treated by gynecologic oncologists far surpass those of patients whose surgeons were not gynecologic oncologists.  To read more about this new research,  CLICK HERE. 

New Hope for Early Detection of Ovarian and Endometrial Cancers

Cara Tenenbaum, Vice President for Policy and External Affairs at OCNA and a Rhonda's Club board member, reports that a small study of 46 women showed that examining cells on the cervix with the Pap test can help identify ovarian and uterine cancers. In this study, DNA analysis detected 41% of ovarian cancer cases.  For more information, read the article on msnbc.msn.com or nytimes.com.

Cervical Cancer Screening

The U.S. Preventive Services Task Force announced on March 14, 2012 its final recommendation on screening for cervical cancer. For more information, CLICK HERE.

Ovarian Cancer Advocates Troubled by FDA Decision on Avastin and Breast Cancer

Posted by the Ovarian Cancer National Alliance (OCNA)

On November 18, 2011 the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced that it would remove metastatic breast cancer from the label for Avastin (bevacizumab). This decision follows recommendations made in June by the FDA Oncologic Drugs Advisory Committee. Responding to today’s decision, OCNA CEO Karen Orloff Kaplan, MSW, MPH, ScD, expressed concern that the removal of metastatic breast cancer from the Avastin label could negatively affect women with ovarian cancer, for whom the drug is used off-label.  read more >>

Ovarian Cancer Patients with BRCA Mutations May Fare Better than Non-Carriers

A large, multicenter study shows that women with ovarian cancer who have mutations in the BRCA1 or BRCA2 genes have better survival rates than women who do not have such mutations. The study is also the first to provide strong evidence that ovarian cancer prognosis is better for women with BRCA2 mutations than women with BRCA1 mutations. The results were published online today in JAMA. Inherited mutations in BRCA1 and BRCA2 are the strongest known genetic risk factors for breast cancer and epithelial ovarian cancer, the most common form of ovarian cancer. To read more click here.

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