Dave Brown Encounters Ovarian Cancer Stories During Trek Across America

By now, most of us have seen the popular movie “Forrest Gump,” the story of a man with a learning disability who tells his life story to strangers at a bus stop. He grew up in the south with Jenny as his only friend. He goes on to become a Vietnam war hero and then the man who ran across the country, crisscrossing from coast to coast a few times. “Run, Forrest, run!” is a joke that most people use without a second thought.

In real life, Dave Brown may not be Forrest Gump, but he’s just as determined to walk across the country. But instead of doing it because he “just felt like running,” Dave is promoting ovarian cancer awareness and fundraising for research because his wife had died of the disease a few years ago.

In “Forrest Gump,” Forrest grows a beard and loses weight throughout his trek. In real life, Dave has actually gained weight because of support from residents across the county. On April 11, Dave had crossed into Indiana from Ohio on his 42 walking day.

“I am definitely going to be the first person to walk across the country and gain weight,” he blogged after receiving cookies and other treats from an Ohio woman who lost her sister and mother-in-law to ovarian cancer.

And like Forrest Gump, Dave has gained a following on the road. A steady stream of walkers have joined Brown throughout his trek.

“I had expected my walk to be much more of a walk of solitude,” he blogged. ”Nine of the last ten days someone has walked at least part of the day with me which has been great.”

To donate to help Dave’s cause, click here.

To read Dave’s blogs, click here.

Celebrities with Ovarian Cancer

Some of the best people to use as models for the fight against ovarian cancer are people, friends, or family members that you know personally. Because the disease touches your heart through these people, you’re more likely to advocate for research and a cure.

However, if those people aren’t available, then most of us turn toward celebrities in order to live vicariously through them. So what happens when one of our favorite celebrities is diagnosed with cancer? We feel like the disease has touched our lives as well. These people become figureheads for the fight against the disease, and we cheer for their survival. Most of the time, they don’t survive because ovarian cancer is often discovered in a late stage. However, as you can tell from the list below, many women were able to live long and fulfilling lives. Take a look at this sampling, and check out the link at the bottom for a much more extensive list.

• Evelyn Ankers, American film actress (died at age 67)
• Eileen Barton, Brooklyn-born American singer (died at age 81)
• Kathy Bates, Oscar-winning American actress, surviving; later treated for breast cancer
• Laurie Beechman, American actress/singer (died at age 44)
• Marcheline Bertrand, American film actress; mother of Angelina Jolie and James Haven (died at age 56)
• Carol Bly, American short-story writer/essayist (died at age 77)
• Diem Brown, Reality TV star (MTV's The Real World and Road Rules, as well as MTV's documentary of her experience with the disease), surviving
• Dorothy Brunson, American businesswoman; first African American woman to own radio and television stations (died at age 72)
• Pam Brown, American politician (died at age 58)
• Carol Channing, American stage and musical comedy actress, surviving
• Maureen Connolly, tennis great; first woman to win four grand slam titles in one year (died age 34)

Follow this link for a much larger list. 

German Lab Apologizes and Retracts Info about Henrietta Lacks's Genome

It seems that the German lab that published Henrietta Lacks’s genome realized its mistake, apologized, and “withdrew” the data from an online journal.

Henrietta Lacks was a poor Virginian tobacco farmer who worked the same land as her slave ancestors. Society recently became aware of her and her cells because of Rebecca Skloot’s 2011 book, “The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks.” The book’s summary explains the many uses that science has gleaned from HeLa cells. The summary says:

“HeLa cells were vital for developing the polio vaccine; uncovered secrets of cancer, viruses, and the atom bomb’s effects; helped lead to important advances like in vitro fertilization, cloning, and gene mapping; and have been bought and sold by the billions.”

Science has used her cervical cancer cells, taken in 1951 without her consent and called HeLa cells, to develop vaccines (such as the one for polio) and treatments, and to unravel the secrets of cancer. Lacks is called the immortal woman because even though she died and is buried in an unmarked grave, her cells have been replicated and kept alive to this day. But because her cells were taken without her consent in 1951, her family members are concerned that the world now has information regarding their genetic traits--the most personal of personal information. In addition, the family has not received monetary compensation or royalties from all the experiments and scientific advances.

Follow this link for more information.

Registration for the Ovarian Cancer National Alliance’s 16th Annual Conference

Registration is now open for the Ovarian Cancer National Alliance’s 16th Annual Conference, the longest running conference devoted to ovarian cancer survivors. “It is the epicenter for researchers, clinicians, survivors and friends to come together, learn from one another and discover the latest developments in diagnosis, treatment and quality of life for women with ovarian cancer.”

The conference will be held in Washington, D.C., on the weekend of July 12-15. Register by Friday, June 7, 2013 to receive a preferred registration rate.

Every attendee can join the organization on Capitol Hill, where you can tell members of Congress how ovarian cancer has touched your life. You can also ask for support of important programs.

More conference programs will occur on Saturday to make them more available to attendees. There will be full-day sessions on Saturday and Sunday with an Advocacy Day on Monday, July 15.

2013 Ovarian Cancer National Alliance Conference
Hyatt Regency Washington on Capitol Hill
400 New Jersey Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20001
United States
Event Details For registration questions and assistance:
Rose Draper
AMC Network
Phone: (707) 829-9484
Email: ocnareg@amcnetwork.com 

Attention: Registration rates will go up after June 7.
Your registration fee covers includes sessions, materials and meal functions—breakfasts and lunches on Saturday and Sunday, and a reception on Sunday evening. Breakfast is also included on Monday, July 15, for those taking part in our Advocacy Day on Capitol Hill. The registration fee does not cover travel costs, dinners and hotel accommodations.

For more information, click here and here.

Parents Who Refuse to Vaccinate Daughters Against HPV

Have you heard of parents who refuse to vaccinate their children? They believe vaccines may cause health problems, other diseases, neurological problems, and even sterilization. This creates a problem because if their child contracts an age-old disease, it puts other children (such as babies who are still too young for specific vaccines) at greater risk.

Although HPV isn’t as communicative as cholera, tuberculosis, measles, mumps, or other diseases of that nature, it’s still incredibly dangerous and can be transmitted easily through sexual interaction, at the very least. Numerous studies have linked HPV with cervical cancer.

The statistics around a parent’s refusal to vaccinate daughters against HPV are striking.

As of 2010:

• 75 percent of teenage girls in the U.S. were not up to date on their HPV vaccinations.
• 44 percent of parents said they didn't plan to get their daughters vaccinated, which was up from 40 percent two years earlier.

Here are the reasons given by parents who did not want to give daughters the HPV vaccine:

An article that details this information further stated:

The 14 percent who answered "not sexually active" highlight the misconception that people who are not having sex don't need the vaccination. It's most effective when given before a person starts having sex. There's also the misconception here that parents actually know when their kids start having sex.

The 16.4 percent that cited safety concerns was striking, since the number tripled between 2008 and 2010. Unfortunately the subjects didn't expand on what those concerns were or what prompted the rise. And then, the "not needed/not necessary" responses ... see the mortality statistics above.

In the U.S., only 45 percent of adults said they would be in favor of allowing teenagers to get vaccinated without parental consent. Though clearly sometimes parents just don't understand.

Follow this link for more information.

NCCN Standards for Best Treatment

There should be a standard for dealing with certain types of cancer, but there’s not. In the annual meeting of the Society of Gynecologic Oncology, researchers agreed on the fact that there are various degrees of treatment quality provided for ovarian cancer.

Over 13,000 women with epithelial ovarian cancer were listed on the California Cancer Registry from 1999 to 2006. Of them only 37 percent received treatment that adhered to the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN)’s guidelines, the “gold standard” for treatment.

But wouldn’t there be a backlash from the public if most women weren’t receiving the best care? Not if that cancer isn’t as widely recognized as, say, breast cancer. Plus, many women diagnosed with the disease are a little sicker, a little older, and less likely to advocate for themselves and others.

Whether patients received protocol treatment depended on two major factors: 1) Surgeons who operated on more than 10 women a year for ovarian cancer, and 2) hospitals that treated more than 20 women. If any of those numbers dropped, the patients did not receive standard care.

With this in mind, women need to be aware of who they choose to provide them with treatment. Who they choose and where they go will have a major factor in whether they survive.

The best thing to do is ask a prospective doctor whether he or she follows NCCN guidelines, and try to be admitted to a hospital with a gynecologic oncologist that has regular admittance of and experience with ovarian cancer.

Follow this link to read more.

Types of Ovarian Cancer

Ovarian cancer doesn’t come with just one type of tumor, one type of cell, or four general stages. There are different types of cells, types of tumors, and stages to keep in mind if your doctor gives you the dreaded news.

There are over 30 types of ovarian cancer because of the type of cell from which they start. Cancerous tumors can start from three common cell types:

• Surface Epithelium - cells covering the lining of the ovaries
• Germ Cells - cells that are destined to form eggs
• Stromal Cells - cells that release hormones and connect the different structures of the ovaries

The most common tumors include:

• Common Epithelial Tumors. They develop from cells that cover the outer surface of the ovary. Most of the tumors like this are benign (noncancerous) and include several types: serous adenomas, mucinous adenomas, and Brenner tumors.
• Cancerous Epithelial Tumors. These are carcinomas, which begin in the tissue that lines the ovaries, and are the most common and most dangerous.
• Borderline tumors or tumors of low malignant potential (LMP tumors). These are tumors that aren’t clearly identified as cancerous under a microscope.
• Germ Cell Tumors. These develop from the cells that produce the ova or eggs. Most are benign, but some are cancerous and may be life threatening. The most common germ cell malignancies are maturing dysgerminomas, teratomas, and endodermal sinus tumors.
• Stromal Tumors. These belong to a rare class of tumors that develop from connective tissue cells that hold the ovary together, in addition to cells that produce the female hormones: estrogen and progesterone. The most common types of stromal tumors are granulosa-theca and Sertoli-Leydig cell tumors and are considered to be low-grade cancers

The stages of ovarian cancer include:

• Stage I – Cancer growth is limited to the ovary or ovaries.
• Stage IA - Growth is limited to one ovary and the tumor is confined to the inside of the ovary. Stage IB - Growth is limited to both ovaries without any tumor on their outer surfaces.
• Stage IC - The tumor is Stage IA or IB and (1) tumor is present on the outer surface of one or both ovaries; (2) the capsule has ruptured; and/or (3) there are ascites containing malignant cells or with positive peritoneal washings.
• Stage II - Growth of the cancer involves one or both ovaries and has extended to the pelvis.
• Stage IIA - The cancer has extended to and/or involves the uterus, fallopian tubes, or both.
• Stage IIB - The cancer has extended to other pelvic organs.
• Stage IIC - The tumor is Stage IIA or IIB and (1) tumor is present on the outer surface of one or both ovaries; (2) the capsule has ruptured; and/or (3) there are ascites containing malignant cells or with positive peritoneal washings.
• Stage III - Growth of the cancer involves one or both ovaries, and (1) the cancer has spread beyond the pelvis to the lining of the abdomen; and/or (2) the cancer has spread to lymph nodes.
• Stage IIIA - During an operation, the surgeon can see cancer on one or both of the ovaries, but not in the abdomen or lymph nodes. However, small deposits of cancer are found in the abdominal peritoneal surfaces when biopsies are checked under a microscope.
• Stage IIIB - The tumor is in one or both ovaries, and deposits of cancer are visibly present in the abdomen during surgery, but not exceeding 2 cm in diameter. The cancer has not spread to the lymph nodes.
• Stage IIIC - The tumor is in one or both ovaries, and (1) the cancer has spread to lymph nodes; and/or (2) the deposits of cancer exceed 2 cm in diameter and are found in the abdomen.
• Stage IV - The most advanced stage. Growth involves one or both ovaries and distant metastases (spread of the cancer to organs located outside of the peritoneal cavity) have occurred. Finding ovarian cancer cells in pleural fluid (from the cavity which surrounds the lungs) is also evidence of stage IV disease.

Follow this link for more information.