Petition Seeks Fair Support For Women With Ovarian Cancer
Organiser of a
petition asking for a better deal for education about and
support for ovarian cancer, Jane Ludemann, says that
legislators and decision makers need to start taking this
disease seriously; it kills a woman every two days in
Aotearoa New Zealand. “Ovarian Cancer is the most
deadly gynaecological cancer, and kills more women than New
Zealand’s annual road toll and more than melanoma. Yet it
remains underfunded and largely ignored,” she
says. Jane is spearheading a petition to Parliament
asking for the development of ovarian cancer education
campaigns for the public and health professionals, better
access to testing for women with symptoms, improved access
to approved therapies and clinical trials, and dedicated
funding of research. “The most significant issues
around ovarian cancer begin with the lack of knowledge about
it – women don’t know the symptoms and leave it too long
to report to their doctors, who themselves often don’t
connect the symptoms with the cause. “Next, there is
no specific screening test for ovarian cancer (unlike a
mammogram for breast cancer or a smear for cervical cancer)
and providers use the excuse of funding to leave symptomatic
women untested. “Then we lack access to drugs that
are proven effective overseas and to clinical trials –
which would allow women to access promising new
treatments. Jane says that virtually every advance in
cancer survival has been made on the back of clinical trials
and the lack of funding in this country means the trials are
not available here. “It is extraordinary that the
government spends more than $126 million on medical research
through the Health Research Council (HRC) every year. In
2018, 2019 and (to date) in 2020 the HRC has not funded any
ovarian cancer research at all. “Significant
improvements in survival just cannot be made without
advances in treatment and screening through
research. “There are just too many families affected
by the Ovarian Cancer-caused illness and deaths of mothers,
partners, sisters, nieces and friends. In the lead up to the
election we hope both sides of the house will pay attention
to this very real health issue,” she said. The
petition is being supported by Cure Our Ovarian Cancer,
Ovarian Cancer Awareness, Talk Peach, and the New Zealand
Gynaecological Foundation. If can be accessed here: www.parliament.nz/en/pb/petitions/document/PET_99389/petition-of-jane-ludemann-for-cure-our-ovarian-cancer With
women leading both major parties and the highest number of
female MPs (38%) since women were first allowed to stand for
Parliament in 1919, it’s time that proper attention was
paid to one of the most fatal of women’s
cancers.