Mays Cancer Center and SA Cancer Council welcome 7-time Olympic medalist Shannon Miller to Beacon of Hope Luncheon
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 9, 2022
Contacts:
Eileen Teves, 210-450-7239, tevese@uthscsa.edu
Monica Taylor, 210-450-8970, taylorm1@uthscsa.edu
WHAT: Seven-time Olympic medalist Shannon Miller will be the keynote speaker at the SA Cancer Council’s Beacon of Hope Luncheon, an event celebrating the organization’s 38 years of extraordinary service and legacy of supporting the Mays Cancer Center, home to UT Health San Antonio MD Anderson Cancer Center. The organization is evolving into a new expanded volunteer structure to continue to better serve and support the Mays Cancer Center and other initiatives including the new UT Health San Antonio Multispecialty & Research Hospital, scheduled to open in 2024.
WHEN: Tuesday, September 13, 11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
WHERE: Witte Museum (Mays Family Center), 3801 Broadway Street, San Antonio, Texas 78209
WHO: Shannon Miller, seven-time Olympic medalist, gymnast, motivational speaker, author and ovarian cancer survivor
Leaders from UT Health San Antonio, Mays Cancer Center and SA Cancer Council
NOTES: Shannon Miller is a seven-time Olympic medalist in gymnastics who led the “Magnificent Seven” to the US Women’s first ever Team Gold at the 1996 Olympics. In 2011, Shannon was diagnosed with a rare form of ovarian cancer. A baseball sized tumor was removed successfully, followed by an aggressive chemotherapy regimen. Shannon is currently cancer-free and is a strong advocate for early detection. She is the author of It’s Not About Perfect: Competing for My Country and Fighting for My Life, an inspirational memoir encouraging and empowering others to overcome their own personal challenges.
Established in 1984, the SA Cancer Council is an all-volunteer, non-profit organization that funds the fight against cancer. The mission of the SA Cancer Council is to provide financial resources for patient assistance services and cancer research. The organization has donated $6.5 million to the Mays Cancer Center, the only National Cancer Institute (NCI)-designated Cancer Center in South Texas.
September is Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month, a month dedicated to raising awareness of possible early signs and symptoms and promoting early detection. The American Cancer Society estimates about 19,880 women will receive a new diagnosis of ovarian cancer, and about 12,810 women will die from ovarian cancer this year. Ovarian cancer ranks fifth in cancer deaths among women. A woman’s risk of getting ovarian cancer in her lifetime is about one in 78. Her lifetime chance of dying from ovarian cancer is about one in 108. About half of the women who are diagnosed with ovarian cancer are 63 years or older.
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