The World Ovarian Cancer Day (WOCD) movement was held on Friday to spread awareness about ovarian cancer. This year the theme would celebrate the natural bond women have with each other, encouraging people to send their photos of their celebratory bonding moments and to sign the awareness pledge on their website.
Each year, nearly a quarter of a million women around the world are diagnosed with ovarian cancer and the disease is responsible for 140,000 deaths annually. Statistics show that just 45 per cent of women with ovarian cancer are likely to survive for five years compared with 89 per cent of women with breast cancer. Women in developed and developing countries are similarly affected by ovarian cancer, WOCD said in a statement.
“Now in its third year, World Ovarian Cancer Day has grown globally to over 78 organisations from 25 countries,” said Elisabeth Baugh, chair of WOCD international organising committee and CEO of Ovarian Cancer Canada.
All those who sign the WOCD pledge receive an e-card with ovarian cancer risk and symptom information. This card is to be passed along to at least five friends, who in turn would be encouraged to pass it along to their friends.
WOCD also has a social media campaign which includes the WOCD websites, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Pinterest, the organisers of WOCD said in a statement.