Phaedra Malatek cares.

Malatek is president of the Women’s Cancer Awareness Group.

She started the organization because her best friend was diagnosed with ovarian cancer.

“When she was diagnosed with the disease, she had never heard of it,” Malatek said. “Knowing that early detection is the key to survival, we were both motivated to increase awareness about the disease.”

Although ovarian cancer is not the leading form of cancer in women, it is the deadliest.

According to a press release from the Women’s Cancer Awareness Group, every hour, about 10 women in the United States are diagnosed with a cancer of the reproductive organs.

There is no test to diagnose ovarian cancer, but Malatek said she thinks awareness could save lives.

“It is important that women are aware of their bodies and in tune [to] the symptoms, so that the disease can be detected in its more treatable stages,” Malatek said.

“By bringing awareness to the disease, we can combat the lack of diagnostic tools available, and women can get diagnosed earlier.”

Malatek also said if women are diagnosed sooner with ovarian cancer, it could provide clinical researchers more information from which they might develop a diagnostic tool and more treatment alternatives.

Sororities at NIU are a main educational target for the Women’s Cancer Awareness Group.

The group is trying to work with sororities to help educate about ovarian cancer.

“It is our belief that college students in general are the future and that sororities represent women who will develop ovarian cancer,” Malatek said. “We also believe that these women are key to brining all women’s cancer to the attention of the health care and funding organizations.”

Awareness jewelry is one way the group has brought increased knowledge of ovarian cancer.

“We sell our jewelry nationally, making it available to anyone who is interested in raising awareness about gynecologic cancers,“ Malatek said. “We have developed sorority-specific items as a method of reaching sororities with our cancer awareness messages. We truly care about these women understanding their risks of cancer.”