Can you tell me a little about your background and why you joined Aspira?  

I have been in the diagnostics industry for over 20 years working in both the largest labs as well as small, start-up companies.  I believe what we do is important… every day patients and their physicians are waiting for us to provide information that is critical to that patient’s health and well-being — nothing is more important.  

I joined Aspira based on its mission to provide access to the best care for ALL women regardless of their socioeconomic background, ability to pay, or any other factor.  The Company is truly committed to this cause by working with payers, large provider groups, and the Government — at State and Federal levels —  to ensure that Aspira’s innovative products are part of the standard of care.  

What have you learned about ovarian cancer that you wish more women knew?  

That, if not identified early, the mortality rate increases exponentially. 1 in 2 women dies from ovarian cancer vs. 1 in 10 from breast cancer — we need to do a better job as a society in making this fact common knowledge. 

Too many women are dying from ovarian cancer unnecessarily. I also wish more women were aware of the OVA technology since it has been shown to identify early-stage disease more effectively than other testing alternatives.

What do you think are the most promising developments to watch for in the diagnosis or treatment of ovarian cancer? 

Expanding multi-marker testing to a larger group of women —  ie. all women with a mass —  will be eligible to have it tested for risk of becoming cancer.  In addition, the development of a screening test in conjunction with an annual OB/GYN exam would further identify women at risk. 

Do you have any plans for supporting awareness and advocacy to commemorate ovarian cancer month?

Yes, I am working on legislation at the State and Federal levels to advocate for specific bills that will provide access to multi-marker testing for all women, regardless of where they live or what insurance they have.