Kingston, N.Y. – August 25, 2014 – Cruise the Hudson from Kingston on the Teal motor yacht from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. Sept. 13 to support the HealthAlliance of the Hudson Valley’s Linda Young Ovarian Cancer Support Program.
The fundraising cruise, during national Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month, will depart from the Rondout Creek port at 1 Broadway.
The 3-hour cruise will include dinner provided by Mariner’s Harbor Restaurant and adult rock ’n’ roll music performed by the Just Us band. An $80 donation from each guest aboard the Teal will support the Linda Young Ovarian Cancer Support Program.
“The Ovarian Cancer Support Program is committed to improving the quality of life for survivors and raising awareness of ovarian cancer in order to promote early detection,” said Ellen Marshall, director of the HealthAlliance’s Oncology Support Program, which oversees the Linda Young program.
“We’re a vital resource and support network for women diagnosed with ovarian cancer and their families and friends,” she said.
Early detection is key, Marshall said.
Each year, nationwide, more than 20,000 women are diagnosed with ovarian cancer and about 15,000 women die from the disease.
No early screening tests exist, but as many as nine in 10 women later diagnosed with ovarian cancer experience symptoms, even in the disease’s early stages. However, they often overlook these symptoms or mistake them for other medical problems.
The symptoms include bloating, pelvic pain, abdominal swelling, difficulty eating or feeling full quickly and urinary urgency.
“Know ovarian cancer’s subtle symptoms and take early action,” Marshall said. “See your doctor, preferably a gynecologist, if you have any symptom for more than a couple of weeks or if you experience other symptoms that are unusual for your body.”
“Most cases of ovarian cancer are unfortunately diagnosed in their later stages,” Marshall said. “But if diagnosed and treated early, when the cancer is confined to the ovary, the 5-year survival rate is more than 90 percent.”
This is why the HealthAlliance support program urges women and their families to recognize ovarian cancer’s early signs and symptoms, she said.
The name of the yacht used for the Sept. 13 cruise “also happens to be the same as the official color of ovarian cancer awareness, just as pink is the color used to express moral support for women with breast cancer,” Marshall said.
“TEAL is also an acronym for Take Early Action and Live,” she added.
To reserve your seat on the Teal, please call the Oncology Support Program at (845) 339-2071.
For more information about the Linda Young Ovarian Cancer Support Program, logon to hahv.org/service/linda-young-ovarian-cancer-support-program. To learn more about ovarian cancer awareness, logon to the Ovarian Cancer National Alliance’s ovariancancer.org.