Feature Stories
Learn about new initiatives underway to overcome ovarian cancer and meet people who are committed to making a difference.
Stories found here are from Seeds of Hope, the monthly e‑newsletter.
Each year, 2,800 Canadian women are diagnosed with ovarian cancer and just over a quarter of them live in the province of Quebec. This is due in part to the region’s large population and there is some evidence to suggest that the BRCA gene mutation is more prevalent in the French Canadian community, increasing risk for ovarian cancer.
When Louise Nolet marked her fifth year out of treatment, she wanted to find a way to acknowledge the milestone. "I had to do something to change the course of this disease!" she says. After searching online, she found the Ovarian Cancer Canada Walk of Hope and registered to walk in Quebec City.
Balbina Pereira was diagnosed with Stage 2 ovarian cancer in November 2016. Balbina’s husband Manuel and her daughters, Stephanie and Vanessa, quickly stepped up to form her support team and continue to be by her side every step of the way.
It’s been nine years since Houda Moussallier began volunteering for Ovarian Cancer Canada. Today she continues to dedicate her time to what she calls “the cause of my life.”
Meet Joanne
Only three days after her last chemotherapy treatment, Joanne Rivest of Dartmouth, Nova Scotia participated in the Ovarian Cancer Canada Walk of Hope for the very first time
Genetic testing has been a hot topic in the news lately. People are starting to use genetic test information to chart the course for disease prevention with their health care professionals. For women with ovarian cancer, and their family members, the subject is of particular importance.
Because of your support, the impact of life changing initiatives was amplified in 2017. Last year, you banded together to call attention to this disease throughout Parliament and locally. In the midst of ensuring your voice was heard, you ushered in a new way for women with ovarian cancer to share information and insights with one another.
“When you find out you have ovarian cancer, you get to thinking about all the ‘what ifs.’ What if I had gone to the doctor earlier? What if I had been more emphatic when I knew something was wrong?” says Barb Vervaeke who was diagnosed with Stage 3C ovarian cancer. “My first year, when the holidays rolled around, I sat waiting for the other shoe to drop, just reeling.”
Look at the ladyballs on her
The community’s strength in numbers is growing as more women with ovarian cancer are connecting online and confronting the disease with support from others who have been there. To do this, they are joining OVdialogue, a new online community where people who have been diagnosed with ovarian cancer can get to know one another, exchange insights and share their stories.