Women’s Health Matters.
Our Mission: To support the growth and health of Black women through education access and health awareness.
There’s no lack of evidence that Black women face barriers in the American health care system. Black women are disproportionately affected by heart disease, high blood pressure, and maternal mortality. The racial disparities present when a black woman faces an ovarian cancer diagnosis are no different. 1 in 78 women will be diagnosed with ovarian cancer in her lifetime. There is no diagnostic test such as a Pap smear or a mammogram to detect this cancer in an annual screening. When detected at Stage I, the five-year survival rate for ovarian cancer is 90%. However, if the cancer is detected at Stage IV, the five-year survival rate plummets to 17%. Black women are less likely to receive the appropriate diagnosis or hormone treatments they need for gynecological cancers making them more likely to succumb to the cancer.
The goal of the Oshun Charitable Organization is to increase ovarian cancer awareness in the black community. Our theory of change is rooted in education and advocacy. We believe that meeting women where they are- in their churches, community centers, or hair salons- to share critical health information could be life saving. We also understand that information about ovarian cancer is not enough. There needs to be a diagnostic test for the disease and a larger push within the medical community to identify the symptoms of a gynecological cancer. With your support, we can make late stage diagnoses of ovarian cancer a thing of the past.
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The Founding Board, The Oshun Charitable Organization