ASPiRA LABs Partners with New York Yankees Manager Joe Girardi for Ovarian Cancer Awareness Campaign Promoting Earlier Diagnosis
AUSTIN, Texas, Sept. 7, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- ASPiRA LABs, a Vermillion company (NASDAQ: VRML), is proud to be partnering with New York Yankees Manager, Joe Girardi, in its latest national campaign, "Everyone Knows Someone," which, in support of Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month, aims to highlight that "everyone" is impacted by ovarian cancer.
"My mother, Angela, was a small Italian woman who was kind but tough on us about our education," said Girardi, who lost his mother to ovarian cancer while he was a student-athlete at Northwestern University. "I feel fortunate that my mother was given three to six months to live, and she lived six years. But golly, I sure would have liked to have sixteen or twenty-six years with her," he added. Along with Girardi, the campaign video highlights identical twin sisters and a group of friends impacted by ovarian cancer, captured here.
Ovarian cancer remains the deadliest cancer among women, with only a 46 percent chance of survival compared to 89 percent for breast cancer. But when detected in Stage 1, women have a 90 percent chance of having more moments with their family and friends. "With 'Everyone Knows Someone' we want people to understand that every day, there are women in their lives who are diagnosed with ovarian cancer," said Shetal Vyas, Director of Marketing for ASPiRA LABs.
"Ovarian cancer, which often appears initially as a pelvic mass, has been difficult to diagnose and many women 'pinball' from doctor to doctor to determine their diagnosis while attributing many common symptoms as typical monthly discomfort," said Valerie Palmieri, President and CEO of Vermillion. "At ASPiRA LABs we are improving the assessment of risk of cancer with our product, OVA1. This is the first FDA-cleared blood test to evaluate the ovarian cancer risk of a pelvic mass by helping women and their doctors have peace of mind that ovarian cancer MAY or MAY NOT be present. If present, our technology directs them to the right specialist for their first pelvic mass surgery. Women with ovarian cancer improve their survival up to 40% by having their first surgery performed by a gynecologic oncologist. Many major medical reports have found that the MAJORITY of women do not get to the proper care for ovarian cancer."
ASPiRA LABs invites everyone to join Joe Girardi and the women featured in this campaign to share #WhoYouKnow that has been impacted by ovarian cancer with a tweet, picture, or video on social media. Celebrate the survivors in your life and honor the memories of the women that have passed away during Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month. For more information, please visit www.knowpelvicmass.com.
About Vermillion
Vermillion, Inc. is dedicated to the discovery, development and commercialization of novel high-value diagnostic and bio-analytical solutions that help physicians diagnose, treat and improve gynecologic health outcomes for women. Vermillion, along with its prestigious scientific collaborators, discovers, develops, and delivers innovative diagnostic and technology tools that help women with serious diseases. The company's initial in vitro diagnostic test, OVA1®, was the first FDA-cleared, protein-based In Vitro Diagnostic Multivariate Index Assay, and represented a new class of software-based liquid biopsy in vitro diagnostics. In March 2016 Vermillion received FDA clearance for Overa™, a second generation OVA1 test with significantly improved specificity and ease of use. For additional information, including published clinical trials, visit www.vermillion.com.
About ASPiRA LABs, OVA1® and Overa™
- ASPiRA LABs is a wholly-owned, specialized women's health reference laboratory of Vermillion, Inc. Its vision is to be the global leader in personalized medical management of gynecologic health to improve clinical outcomes for patients, physicians and payers.
- OVA1 is a proprietary FDA-cleared blood test designed to help physicians assess the risk of ovarian cancer prior to surgery, facilitating more effective referral of high risk patients to a specialist (gynecologic oncologist) for surgical treatment.
- Overa, cleared by the FDA on March 18, 2016, measures the levels of five proteins found in the blood and then uses a second-generation algorithm, incorporated into the OvaCalc® software, to stratify risk. A woman's risk of cancer is measured by using a 0-10 scale with a single cut-off point of 5 eliminating the ambiguity in determining menopausal status. A high Overa score is not a diagnosis of cancer, rather it indicates an increased risk of malignancy when used as intended.
Media Contact:
Katie Leighton
Leighton PR
610-513-6930
[email protected]
Investor Relations Contact:
Michael Wood
LifeSci Advisors LLC
Tel 1-646-597-6983
[email protected]
SOURCE Vermillion, Inc.
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