Earlier this week, scrolling through Instagram, nosying around at what this awesome community were up to, I came across a lovely image of some luxurious looking yarn. The crocheter in me was immediately drawn to it and I realised it was posted by the lovely @TheCraftyWintonian (AKA Sarah), whom I had met at WWD events before. In her post, she was explaining how her mum was diagnosed with Ovian cancer in 2016 and she was having a yarn sale to raise some funds, I got in touch and asked her for more information.
Sarah
In 2016, my Mum was diagnosed with ovarian cancer. Nearly three years after her diagnosis, hundreds of appointments and a dozen or so chemotherapy treatments, (plus a trial drug or two!) she is raising money to support a charity that have given her so much support. March is Ovarian Cancer Awareness month and the charity Ovacome are raising money to help promote the signs and symptoms of this lesser understood cancer. We all know how to check ourselves for the signs of breast cancer, but do you know the symptoms of ovarian cancer? No, probably not!
My mum has been the strongest woman I know, dealing with all the side effects of chemo with such dignity and good humour – she is such an inspiration to us. To raise money herself, she’s doing a catwalk show with some other brave women also dealing with ovarian cancer. She keeps saying it’s her biggest challenge yet, which considering everything she’s been through seems baffling!
She’s also my go-to knitting support helpline, always at the end of the phone for advice and sometimes helping me master new skills in the garden! In fact, she came to help at my very first arm knitting class! To do my bit to support my Mum, I am selling the cores from the bales of yarn I use in my arm knitting classes. These cores are slightly crimped and therefore sold as seconds, however, you can still use them for all sorts of things! There are various sizes from half a kilo to 1.5kg and they are sold at £6 per kilo. This is a lot cheaper than normal! You need about 2kg to make a blanket roughly 70x145cm. All proceeds will go to Ovacome (minus P&P) as they are doing so much to support
women who are diagnosed or dealing with this cancer.
There will be more details about how you can get your mitts on some bargain yarn on Wednesday 13th March, at 8pm over on @TheCraftyWintonian Instagram. Even if you've never crocheted/knitted before - what better way to start the hobby than by supporting some of the incredible work these not-for-profits accomplish.
Ovacome
Ovacome is the national UK ovarian cancer charity focused on providing support to anyone affected by ovarian cancer. This includes women who have either been diagnosed with the disease or think that they might be at risk, as well as their friends and family and healthcare professionals.
Ovacome are a strong community of many thousands of people, all working together with the aim of reducing isolation, sharing information, promoting knowledge and supporting anyone affected by ovarian cancer.
In 2017 they had just under 4,000 members and supported over 18,000 people. Ovacome campaigns to help women and health professionals to recognise the signs and symptoms of ovarian cancer and for high quality care and treatment to be available to all.
They run events and provide opportunities for those affected by the disease to get together and share their experiences.
Visit their website for more information about what they do and the signs to look out for: www.ovacome.org.uk
Ovarian Cancer Month
Ovarian cancer is the biggest gynaecological killer of women in the UK women, with UK survival rates among the worst in Europe.
Three quarters of women are diagnosed once the cancer has already spread, making treatment more difficult. This is why awareness is so important, to drive forward improvements in diagnosis, treatment and survival. Ovarian cancer charities in the UK are all working to increase awareness of the disease, with women and GPs, in order to save lives.
During Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month, the ovarian cancer charities come together to reach as many people as possible with the symptoms of ovarian cancer.
For more about Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month visit their website: ocam.org.uk
Follow WWD on Instagram @WomenWhoDo_UK as I share my arm-knitting results from my purchase on Wednesday!
