DeLauro Praises Passage of Johanna's Law

Washington, DC— Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro (CT-3) celebrated the passage late last night of the Gynecologic Cancer Education and Awareness Act of 2010 by the House of Representatives. This was bipartisan effort to reauthorize Johanna's Law, which works to educate women about the symptoms, risk factors, and prevention of gynecologic cancers such as ovarian, uterine, and cervical cancers.

Johanna's Law, which was first passed in 2006, was named for Johanna Silver Gordon, a public school teacher and loving and beloved mother, daughter, sister, aunt and friend, who was diagnosed with late stage ovarian cancer. Despite multiple surgeries and aggressive treatment, Johanna died only 3 ½ years after her diagnosis. This bill was proposed by her sister, Sheryl Silver, to help raise awareness about the disease and educate woman and their health care providers about its symptoms, clinical signs, and risk factors.

The reauthorization of this bill will provide for a national education campaign, led by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, to increase the awareness and knowledge of health care providers and women with respect to gynecological cancers.

"24 years ago, I was diagnosed with ovarian cancer. I was lucky, and had excellent doctors who detected the cancer by chance in Stage 1. I underwent radiation treatment for two-and-a-half months, and I am fortunate to say that I have now been cancer-free for 24 years. I was one of the lucky ones. My life was given back to me and changed at the same time. And I know that, had my doctors not caught my cancer at its earliest stage, the final outcome might have been very, very different," said Congresswoman DeLauro. "Better awareness is critical in fighting these diseases, as women who catch their ovarian cancer at an earlier stage are over three times more likely to survive the disease than those who do not. This bill will help to educate women, raise awareness, and ultimately, save lives."

"My sister Johanna was a health conscious woman who visited the gynecologist regularly for pelvic exams and Pap smears. Still, she was blindsided by her ovarian cancer diagnosis," recalled Sheryl Silver, Johanna's sister and founder of the Alliance for Women's Cancer Awareness. "Johanna didn't know the persistent heartburn and abdominal bloating she experienced prior to her diagnosis were common symptoms of ovarian cancer— and lost precious time taking antacids, then waiting to see a gastroenterologist. Sadly, not knowing the symptoms of ovarian cancer led to a lengthy—ultimately lethal—delay in her diagnosis. After learning how common her story of late diagnosis was, I proposed Johanna's Law to end the pervasive lack of public knowledge about ovarian cancer that has led to so much needless suffering and death in this country."

"Early detection is the key to surviving gynecological cancers. By helping women and their doctors better understand the signs, symptoms and risk factors of gynecological cancers, Johanna's law is helping to save the lives of women every day," said American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network President Chris Hansen.