Whispers of Hope

My name is Andrea Annese Como and this is my

experience as an Ovarian Cancer survivor. Here’s

a little background: I spent a long time taking

infertility drugs and was never able to conceive a

child. I would soon learn that this increases the risks

of Ovarian Cancer. In July of 2006, I was turning

40 and decided to challenge myself. Exercise and

healthy eating had always been an important part

of my life and so I decided to begin sprint training.

Soon aft er, I started to notice a few symptoms that

were unusual for me. Th is is when the fi rst whispers

began.

frequent urination when exercising… fatigue… spotting between periods… mild pain on

my left side...

Aft er an exam and several other tests, I was told that

there was nothing to be concerned about at that

time. A few weeks later while my family and I were

vacationing in Florida, the whispers began again.

Th ey faded for a few weeks and naturally faded from

my mind as well. Little did I know that another

whisper was right around the corner…

I will never forget that unusually warm day, March

12th, 2007. I picked up our children, Nathaniel and

Nicolette, from school and we were stopping at the

track on the way home to run. I was on my fi nal

sprint when the pain started. Alarmed by its severity,

I called my husband, Dave. Within the hour, we were

at the emergency room.

It was determined that I had two large cysts pressing

against my left ovary which I was given medication

for to ease the pain. Th at following morning, I

met with my gynecologist, Dr. Clements, who

determined that immediate surgery would be

required.

My heart told me something was not right, but my faith told me that everything was going to

be fi ne.

I received the diagnosis of Stage 2 Ovarian Cancer.

Dr. Kredentser, a Gynecological Oncologist who

performed my surgery, later informed me that if I did

not experience the pain from the cysts, my diagnosis

would have remained undetected and the cancer

would have progressed onto Stage 4 very quickly.

How I got my nickname, Lucky.

I was later relieved when Dr.

Aghajanian, Chief of Oncology

at Mount Sinai Hospital in New

York City, told me that

chemotherapy would not

be necessary. Instead, she

recommended three radiation

treatments. Dr. Savage was

my radiologist at St. Peters

Hospital, and I can

honestly say that he and all of

the nurses that cared for me

were incredible as they helped

to make a frightening situation

as comfortable as possible for

me.

I am always asked how cancer

has changed my life, and my

answer is simply this; in many

ways, cancer was a gift .

It forced me to think about who I am and who I want to be.

It has given me clarity of purpose, and that is to raise my beautiful children, Nathaniel and Nicolette.

It has given me clarity of conscience, to have the best attitude each and every day.

In the beginning I remember

thinking, please God, just give

me a break! But aft er time

passed, I realized that God did

give me quite a few breaks. I

went through infertility so I

would be blessed with adopting

Nathaniel and Nicolette. I went

through enough pain to go to

the emergency room, which

led me to surgery. And then,

my big break, my diagnosis was

detected early.

I am so grateful to say that I

recently celebrated fi ve years

of being cancer free. I believe

everything happens for a

reason. In return for all of the

breaks I have received, I am

hoping that I can share my

own experience with as many

women as I can.

I encourage you to share this

story with all of the special

women in your life, and

remember: Ovarian Cancer

whispers, so listen!

Th ank you for listening to

my story. Andrea

Life is a journey and sometimes the greatest obstacles rock your world and clarify your purpose.

I am a Board Member for Caring Together, a local support group educating local colleges. Their mission is to provide support, education, and advocacy for women with Ovarian Cancer as

well as support research eff orts aimed at fi nding an early detection test and a cure. Th rough the organization, I have had the

fortunate opportunity to speak at numerous

events; some of which have included, Albany

Medical College, Russell Sage College, Bassett

Hospital, and Herkimer Community College.

It is my passion in life to educate as many

women as I can about the importance of early

detection!

In November of 2010, I began to plan local

events in my local area of Albany, NY, to

educate the community. I have organized yoga

classes at Estudio, spin classes at Gold’s Gym

and Th e Revolution, and boxing events for

Pugnacious Promotions.

So far, my eff orts have raised $7,500 with

100% of all proceeds donated to Caring

Together.

I have also been part of the Survivors Teaching

Students Program of NYS for the last two

years. Myself, along with several other Ovarian

Cancer survivors share our stories with medical

and nursing students at Albany Medical

College, Russell Sage College, and Th e College

of St. Rose. Th e students get the opportunity to

hear our stories and compare how the doctors,

disease, and medications have changed over the

years.

I feel so very blessed and grateful that my

story has a happy ending and I have made it my

life’s mission to be an advocate and resource for

as many women as I can possibly reach.

Purpose&Passion My

To order, please

(518) 369-3742.

I teamed up with Connelly’s

Diamond Gallery to create this

unique piece of jewelry (featured

below) to support the Ovarian

Cancer cause.

Th e bracelet is made of Austrian

crystals baked into 10 mm clay

beads and threaded in nylon cord.

Th e bracelets retail for $50.00.

$25 of every sale will be donated

to Caring Together! Th e bracelets

operate with a manual slide and

comes in one-size-fi ts-all.

Wris

t in

Wris

t. Ha

nd in

Han

d. Show

your support in style.

e contact me at:

.

To order an Ovarian Cancer bracelet visit:www.sparkleforhope.com

I have been lucky enough to have had my story published in some

high profi le magazines in an attempt to educate as many women as

possible on the importance of early detection. Such publications include:

Syracuse Woman MagazineHer Life Magazine

Times Union HealthyLife MagazineCNY Woman Magazine

If you are interested in reading any of these articles, contact me!

Pictured above: Frieda

Weeks (founder of Hope for Heather) and I at the annual

Charity Fashion Show &

Brunch in Syracuse, NY

Pictured Top and Right:

Magazine shoot for

HealthyLifePictured Below: My story in

Syracuse Woman Magazine

Telling My Story

SUPER SATURDAY! I attended Super Saturday for the fi rst

time in 2011 and the experience was so

emotional because it was a dream to be

there and help. I know someday there wil be

a cure or an early detection test for Ovarian

Cancer. I will smile knowing I did my little

part in painting the town teal and educating

women. It was amazing to see hundreds of

people come together to make this event

possible. Th e event ended up raising $3.5

million!

Painting the Town TealWhat is Super Saturday?

Th e Ovarian Cancer Research Fund’s (OCRF) Annual

Super Saturday Event was co-hosted in 2011 by Donna

Karan, Kelly Ripa, and Ariel Foxman of InStyle.

OCRF is the largest independent organization in the

United States dedicated exclusively to funding Ovarian

Cancer research and fi nding a cure.

OCRF has invested nearly $40 million towards

developing innovative strategies for early detection,

identifying new and better targets for treatment, and

determining how to super charge a woman’s immune

response to better fi ght Ovarian Cancer. Th e exclusive

sale, was featured on QVC households, allowing

shoppers throughout the country to get designer styles at

approximately half the manufacturer’s retail price.

Kelly Ripa (pictured with me below!) a longtime

supporter of OCRF, has hosted Super Saturday for the

past seven years.

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Risk Factors

Peri or post-menopause

Uninterrupted ovulation (no pregnancies and or prior use of oral contraceptives)

Family or personal history of breast/ovarian cancer

Presence of BRCA 1 or BRCA 2 gene mutations

Don’t be Don’t be a statistic, be a story...

Historically, Ovarian Cancer

has been called the “silent killer”

because symptoms were not

thought to develop until the

chance of cure was poor. However,

recent studies have shown this

term is untrue and that the

symptoms (see box to the left )

are much more likely to occur in

women with Ovarian Cancer than

women in the general population.

Women with Ovarian Cancer

report that symptoms are

persistent and represent a change

from normal for their bodies.

Th e frequency and/or number of

such symptoms are key factors in

the diagnosis of Ovarian Cancer.

Several studies show that even

early stage Ovarian Cancer can

produce these symptoms.

As women, we know our bodies,

and we know when something

is diff erent. It is crucial that we

pay attention to these symptoms

should they arise, however

insignicant we may think they are.

Early detection is key to saving

lives!

...the silent disease Risk FactorsPeri or post-menopause

Uninterrupted ovulation (no pregnancies and

or prior use of oral contraceptives)

Family or personal history of breast/ovarian cancer

Presence of BRCA 1 or BRCA 2 gene mutations

Use of oral contraceptives for 5+

years

Multiple pregnancies, breast feeding

diagnosesdeaths

14k22k

a statistic, be a Don’t be a statistic, be a storystory......Signs &

SymptomsOvarian Cancer is the

leading cause of death from

gynecological cancers in

the United States. In 2011,

an estimated 22,000 women

were diagnosed with Ovarian

Cancer and 14,000 women

lost their lives to Ovarian

Cancer.

Th e most eff ective way a

woman can protect herself

against Ovarian Cancer is to

become educated.

Learn the signs and

symptoms. Listen to your

body. If these symptoms

persist and they are unusual

for you, see a health care

professional to rule out the

possibility of Ovarian Cancer.

Currently there is no accurate

test for Ovarian Cancer as the

PAP test does not detect it.

If any of these signs and

symptoms are persistent

and unusual for you,

speak to your gynecologist

immediately and ask them to:

“Prove to me that I am not at

risk for Ovarian Cancer.”

(Information provided by

the Ovarian Cancer Research

Fund – www.ocrf.org)

Vague but persistent and unexplained gastrointestinal

complaints

Pelvic and/or abdominal swelling or pain, bloating and/or feeling of fullness

Unexplained change in bowel habits

Frequency and/or urgency of urination

Unexplained weight gain or loss

New and unexplained abnormal post menopausal

vaginal bleeding

mother

friend

survivorbu

sines

s ow

ner

Let’s Paint the Town Teal

If you have an idea or opportunity to spread the word about Ovarian

Cancer, contact me!

Andrea Annese Como518-369-3742 cell

acomo@annese.com email

daughter

woman

wifesister

advocate