PCOS Challenge Drives Change for Major Women's Health Issue with Largest PCOS Awareness Month to Date

ATLANTA, Aug. 31, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- PCOS Challenge: The National Polycystic Ovary Syndrome Association, in partnership with influencers and other leading health and patient-advocacy organizations, will host the largest PCOS Awareness Month to date in September. PCOS Challenge worked with over 130 members of the U.S. Congress to make PCOS Awareness Month a federally designated event.

"#CreatingChangeTogether is the theme for this year's PCOS Awareness Month, reinforcing the need and opportunity for the medical, scientific and patient communities to work together to improve health outcomes and close significant gaps in PCOS research, care, and education. Historically, everyone worked in silos," says Sasha Ottey, Executive Director of PCOS Challenge. "PCOS is the most common endocrine disorder and cause of infertility in women. PCOS can lead to lifelong complications and life-threatening conditions, including diabetes, stroke, cardiovascular disease, fatty liver disease, and endometrial cancer. With an economic burden exceeding $12 billion a year in the U.S. alone and 50-70% of people with the disorder going undiagnosed or misdiagnosed, it is vital that healthcare and government leaders increase awareness and resources for PCOS."

PCOS Awareness Month will kick off with the Fifth Annual World PCOS Day of Unity on Thursday, September 1st. PCOS Challenge started World PCOS Day in 2018. The event brings together people worldwide in solidarity to promote awareness and support those impacted by the disorder. To recognize World PCOS Day, over 130 iconic landmarks around the world will display teal-colored lights in support of people affected by PCOS. PCOS Challenge will also hold its global annual convening of leading patient advocacy organizations, advocates, and influencers to share updates and discuss ways to advance global PCOS awareness and advocacy efforts.

On World PCOS Day, participants will wear teal apparel to promote awareness: at work, in their communities, and on social media. PCOS Challenge encourages followers to share personal videos, post testimonials, and use hashtags and teal photo overlays to spread the message online.

Continuing throughout PCOS Awareness Month, PCOS Challenge will hold multiple events bringing together patients, researchers, healthcare providers, industry leaders, and others to educate the global community about PCOS and promote the need for timely diagnosis and improved care.

• Week 1: PCOS Support and Advocacy (Sep. 1–3)
• Week 2: Fertility, Family Building, and Pregnancy and Maternal Health (Sep. 4-10)
• Week 3: Lifestyle Management for PCOS (Sep. 11-27)
• Week 4: PCOS Related Disorders (Sep. 18-24)
• Week 5: Adolescent Health (Sep. 25-30)

• PCOS Awareness Symposium - The largest PCOS educational event for patients and healthcare professionals. The virtual symposium will be held on Saturday, September 10 and 17, from 10:00 AM - 4:00 PM EDT.
• Rise to the Challenge Gala - Awards dinner recognizing leaders in the field for their outstanding achievements. The gala will be held at the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia on Friday, September 23, from 6:30 -10:00 PM EDT.

PCOS Challenge thanks Spruce Biosciences and Pandia Health for sponsoring this year's PCOS Awareness Month.

"We are honored to recognize the millions of women around the world impacted by PCOS," says Javier Szwarcberg, MD, MPH, Chief Executive Officer of Spruce Biosciences. "As we embark upon PCOS Awareness Month, we are proud to join and support efforts to advocate for increased education, awareness, services, and resources."

"Given that 1 in 10 women will have PCOS in their lifetime, Pandia Health is proud to support PCOS Challenge and PCOS Awareness Month. We want women to get the best healthcare possible and also to have the ability to set it and forget it and have their medication come automatically by mail," says Sophia Yen, MD, MPH, CEO and Co-Founder of Pandia Health.

For more information about PCOS Awareness Month, PCOS Challenge, or to schedule media interviews, please visit PCOSAwarenessMonth.org and PCOSChallenge.org.

Serving over 55,000 members, PCOS Challenge is the largest support and advocacy organization for people with PCOS. PCOS Challenge is the sponsoring organization for World PCOS Day and PCOS Awareness Month and offers supporting resources, information, and events.

Media Contact:
William Patterson
Director of Public Affairs
PCOS Challenge: The National Polycystic Ovary Syndrome Association
Telephone: 404-855-7244

SOURCE PCOS Challenge: The National Polycystic Ovary Syndrome Association