Over the past year and a half MiOra, with the help of GSK, has set up an Ovarian cancer outreach research program to help underserved populations get educated on ovarian cancer symptoms and risk factors, while also educating them about clinical trials and their benefits.

Ovarian cancer (OC) is the second most common gynecologic cancer in the United States. OC causes more deaths than any other cancer of the female reproductive system and minority women have higher death rates due to delayed diagnosis. OC is commonly mistaken for digestive conditions due to its non-specific symptoms. This leads to late detection and diagnosis, particularly in minority groups who are generally diagnosed in the later stages of ovarian cancer. Therefore, education of the public is a key focus of MiOra, in hopes of more a more proactive approach to health in the community and early detection of conditions potentially leading to better health outcomes.

The project is currently on its second cohort, and recently the group has submitted two abstracts to ICCGWO 2022: International Conference on Clinical Gynecology and Women Oncology, in hopes of presenting the abstracts at this conference. 

Pictured are the MiOra interns apart of the second cohort working on the MiOra Ovarian Cancer Outreach Project, lead by Dr. Ozlem Equils and Klaudi Lekaj.

Pictured from right to left – Ashley Castellanos, Connie Yen, Marlene Huerta, Melina Rodriguez, Klaudi Lekaj, Ozlem Equils, Narissa Phung, Othesia Glasgow, Simran Doshi, and Stephanie Chhea.