On 9/9/09 I will celebrate 10 years survival of late stage ovarian cancer. What did I do differently to survive longer than the predicted life expectancy? I had top notch medical procedures and care, an unbelievably supportive husband and family, prayer, and maintained a positive mental attitude. I set out to learn everything I could about this disease, treatments, what to expect etc., since I knew -0- about ovarian cancer. During these 10 years, when PET scans weren't covered by Medicare causing countless women to either not have the test or have to make installment payments to pay for the scan, I joined the National Oncologic PET Registry Committee to bring the patient's voice forward in Medicare's dialogue. Currently, I'm the Southwest Oncology Group's (SWOG) Patient Advocate to the Gynecologic Cancer Committee. SWOG is a nationwide group of dedicated physicians and scientists committed make progress in the prevention and cure of cancer through clinical research. I also belong to the Ovarian Cancer of Arizona Alliance (OCAZ) and am active in fund raising for OCAZ by organizing fun golf tournaments to inform women of the very real symptoms of this disease. Our upcoming tourney is Nov. 12, 2009 in Sun City, AZ. We'd love to have you join us!!
And that's my matchbook bio for today. Laurel