UNSW researcher partners with Australian fashion label to change the outlook for ovarian cancer
Associate Professor Caroline Ford and her powerhouse medical research team at UNSW have partnered with global fashion brand CAMILLA AND MARC for a second year to advance ovarian cancer research.
With the launch of the 'Ovaries. Talk about them' campaign on 12 April, the dynamic partnership is set to drive vital awareness and research funding through a limited edition t-shirt collection.
All proceeds from shirt sales were directly donated to Associate Professor Caroline Ford and her team to fund the development of an early detection test for ovarian cancer.
"The injection of funds from the first successful year of the ‘Ovaries. Talk About Them' campaign has allowed us to create a dedicated expert team of scientists focused on the development of an early detection test for ovarian cancer.
In the last year the team have identified a set of DNA changes specific for ovarian cancer and have begun the process of testing these in the lab on cells from patients. Continued funding will mean trialling and testing in blood from diverse groups of women will happen more quickly which will help to maximise accuracy and move the test to clinical trials. We are hopeful that we could be just years away from an early detection test which would be ground-breaking for this disease," says Associate Professor Ford.
With minimal warning signs, no early detection test, limited funding and no cure, once ovarian cancer is diagnosed, it is often too late. In Australia three women die from the disease every day, and close to 300,000 women are diagnosed every year.
The label’s Creative Director Camilla Freeman-Topper and CEO Marc Freeman were motivated to launch this campaign after losing their mother to ovarian cancer when they were aged just 11 and 13, respectively.
“Along with countless others, we sadly lost our mother to ovarian cancer 28 years ago due to a late diagnosis. The pain of losing my mother so suddenly was devastating and one of the most difficult things I have ever had to encounter, says Freeman-Topper. “We want to start a powerful conversation now, so that our children and future generations can look forward to a future where deaths from ovarian cancer are a rarity rather than the norm.”
“This kind of campaign is effective because it spreads awareness of the disease. It also uses outlets that we don’t generally use in disseminating research – fashion magazines, influencers, weekend newspapers etc. This changes the reach, but also changes the messaging from being something abstract that you may have heard of, to a cause that you need to get behind,” says Associate Professor Ford.
“It is crucial that we shine a light on this devastating disease and change the outlook for our sisters, daughters, mothers and friends.”
Support the UNSW research to validate an early detection test.
Image 1: UNSW Associate Professor Caroline Ford & CAMILLA AND MARC Creative Director Camilla Freeman-Topper
Image 2: L-R Dr Kristina Walton, Associate Professor Caroline Ford, Teagan Fisher
