AT LAST! "ARE YOU DENSE ADVOCACY" LANDS 20-YEAR TOUCHDOWN:
Legislation for National Support for Women’s Health
9/11/2024- The Dense Breast Disclosure Law was officially confirmed at the Legislative Building in the CT State Capitol, hosted by the ‘Are You Dense Advocacy’ organization. The conference was emceed by Mr. Joe Cappello, co-founder and executive director, establishing both a celebration and an historical landmark for the 20+ year crusade for a national legislation. The law affirms the vision of the late Dr. Nancy Cappello for a public educational advocacy to protect women from misinformation about their breast health. This initiative enacted national support for legislative action to enforce patient disclosure about tissue density.
Room #5100 of the Legislative Office Building was filled with supporters from many areas of the 20+ year dense breast advocacy crusade 'raised the roof' of this national movement in support of women's health. The lineup included Mr. Anthony D'Amelio (former CT House Rep), Dr. William Pizzuto, Sandy Cassenelli (founder of Breast Friends Fund & Metastatic Breast Cancer Survivor) and Mary Deming (President of Seymour Pink) are among the list of supportive speakers. The audience was also filled with an array of executive directors from the national breast cancer community including the American Breast Cancer Foundation. - See areyoudense.org for complete list of speakers and their transcripts.
A powerful voice in national Women's Health advocacy resonated from the back of the room, where a familiar face from the big-screen took center stage. The highly-beloved CT Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro transmitted a compelling video message from Washington and received a rousing applause with many tears of loving support. “Today we celebrate the launch of the Food and Drug Administration's Breast Density Notification Rule. I am a 35 year cancer survivor. I'm alive today thanks to the grace of God, the care of hardworking medical professionals, the power of biomedical research and early detection. In 2009, this law was championed by my dear friend Dr. Nancy Capello, who passed away several years ago due to breast cancer...Had Nancy been notified of her status earlier, she may have been here today to celebrate with us. Nancy's husband (Joe) carried on her fight and their story inspired me. I want to thank you again for inviting me to join you today. I urge you to keep up the fight.”
Dr. Lennard Gettz from NY spoke on behalf of the Integrative Cancer Resource Society and the Women's Health Collaborative. He delivered a combined statement from top members including Dr. Robert Bard (NYC), Dr. Noelle Cutter (NY), Dr. Roberta Kline (NM), Dr. Nancy Novack (AZ), Dr. Leslie Valle-Montoya (CA) and Geri Barish (Hewlett House/NY). "The battle against breast cancer is waged from many fronts; we all need to do our part to improve on the clinical diagnostics and therapeutic modalities while bringing renewed empowerment to all sufferers inflicted by cancer. We are also here together to enforce awareness to the underserved and the underdiagnosed women who needs hope. To address all these needs simultaneously is where the battle rages on- and that's where you will find us standing together... with ‘Are You Dense?’ and the many other champions whose courage pushes for a global upgrade in saving lives!"
Thanks to the power of web-streaming technology, an unconfirmed count of breast cancer orgs nationwide (and their respective members) accessed the live feed of the Are You Dense? event. Donna Johnson, president of ‘Are You Dense?’ mentioned about an upcoming virtual (seminar-style) event which will launch sometime in mid-October- bringing in some of the top names in public advocacy as well as leaders from the medical community.
For more info. on this press release, contact ‘Are You Dense Alliance’ (multimedia dist.) / Alexandra Fiederlein: editor.prevention101@gmail.com or call 516-522-0777
SEN. SAUD ANWAR
CONNECTICUT STATE SENATE ADVOCATES FOR UNDERSERVED WOMEN
7/13/2024 ‐ The Women's Health Collaborative proudly celebrates the dedicated commitment and support of STATE SENATOR SAUD ANWAR (D‐South Windsor) of District 3 for his legislative work in health initiatives for women. A pulmonary physician by profession, Sen. Anwar joined public office in 2013 as mayor of South Windsor, CT (until 2015, and 2017‐2019). Senator Anwar is involved in humanitarian and peace initiatives nationally and internationally. He is frequently invited to consult for our government and has organized medical missions for disaster relief. His efforts have been recognized at the state and federal levels and by several professional organizations. He has received numerous citations for his service to the State and is an expert on international affairs.[1]
WOMEN’S HEALTH COLLABORATIVE GOES TO ALBANY
May 21, 2024, leading members of the NY Cancer Resource Alliance (NYCRA) held a special meeting with State Senator Patricia Canzoneri‐Fitzpatrick (of Senate District 9) to discuss critical issues associated with women's cancers. This initial meeting of the minds offered cancer updates from the field, including statistics, diagnostic trends and the continuing battle with restrictive insurance coverage.
TRIBUTE TO A GLOBAL CRUSADER ( Play Video-L) The NY Cancer Resource Alliance gives loving tribute to Dr. Nancy Cappello, co-founder of "Are You Dense" and chief crusader of the mission to bring change to the protocols and standards of Early Detection. Her organization embarked in a global advocacy project to win legislation for dense breast scanning and to bring awareness to the need for better technologies and imaging interpretation. Today, her loving husband Joe continues her unending fight to save more lives through awareness, advocacy and her crusade for change.
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ADVOCACY & JOINING HANDS TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE
By: Geri Barish - Hewlett House (Cancer Resource)
When I first met Joe Cappello, I admitted that I knew about his wife Nancy for years prior. Nancy Cappello was a force of nature and an inspiration to anyone willing to advocate for change in the breast cancer movement. I myself have been a 3x breast cancer survivor and a staunch supporter of public screening with the Women's Health Collaborative and the "Ultrasound Coalition" - but joining with Joe’s organization truly added so much validity to national research and public connectivity. Dr. Robert Bard (our lead radiologist) spoke about Are You Dense? as champions that pushed for government intervention to mandate the disclose of patients’ tissue density. This is a landmark achievement that I reference in my own presentations about women’s health at the NY State Senate and the Dept. of Health in support of early detection and prevention programs. To date, Joe and Are You Dense? has become a permanent part of our coalition to battle breast cancer. His work reflects on the healing factor of public awareness, forging a more powerful presence to educate and promote clinical testing.
EXTRA: 2024 UPDATES ON DENSE BREAST RESEARCH
3/2024- Dr. Noelle Cutter of Molloy University and an associate of Bard Diagnostics/Are You Dense? partnerships conducted an observational study exploring the functional phenotypic differences that make dense breast tissue. Because it is widely noted that women with dense breasts have a greater likelihood of developing cancer, understanding the pathways and changes in gene expression may offer the first avenue for the enzymes enrolled and drug targets for personalized medicine in pursuit of developing better treatment options. “The proposed role of senescence in dense breast tissue metastasis involves creating a tumor-promoting microenvironment, facilitating immune evasion, and promoting angiogenesis, all of which contribute to the progression and spread of cancer cells.”- For full report, visit:
www.pinksmartnews.com
The 2024 Women's Health Resource Network Launches Ultrasound Screening Initiative for Underserved Communities
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| Density under mammograms conceal tumors & cysts. Ultrasound is the suggested screening complement |
In support of the underserved and underdiagnosed women, the WHC was originally founded to bring early detection and public education about the many women’s health disorders that many find to be lacking in access and information. This doctrine united women’s health advocates like Geri Barish (Hewlett House), Joe Cappello (co-founder of the Are You Dense? Foundation), Dr. Robert Bard (IHRC / Integrative Health Research Center), Dr. Noelle Cutter (Molloy University Research on Ovarian and Breast Cancer research programs) and Nancy Novack (of nancyslist.org). “It’s time we wake up lawmakers and the medical community to re-evaluate the existing gold standards (like mammography),” stated Mr. Cappello during a Key to the City speech honored by Waterbury mayor Neil O’Leary. “We are finally picking up great steam in our national push to have all clinicians adopt the advanced results of ultrasound technology… as a sustainable and affordable solution for ALL women!”
