Asha's Swim for Hope IV

My name is Asha Spitzer and I am seventeen years old.

I am a dedicated year-round swimmer for Orinda Aquatics and a junior coach for Sleepy Hollow Swim Club. 

Starting three years ago, I decided I wanted to use my swimming to impact the lives of others. This idea began as “Asha’s Swim for Hope” in 2022, and this will be the fourth year continuing this mission.

This September, for Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month, I will swim the Golden Gate Bridge swim. This is an early morning, open water, one-and-a-half-mile swim through the San Francisco Bay. This endeavor was inspired by many brave people in my life who have been impacted by cancer.

The goal of this swim is to both fundraise and raise awareness for ovarian cancer. For this swim, I would like to raise $2000 for the Ovarian Cancer Research Alliance. OCRA works to cure ovarian cancer, advocate for patients, and support survivors.

Additionally, awareness is especially important for ovarian cancer because early detection can save lives.

Ovarian cancer attacks the ovaries but can often go undetected because of its subtle symptoms and a lack of a specific screening method. I hope to spread awareness of ovarian cancer so we can help women take preventative measures against higher stages of the disease. This year alone, 20,890 women in the United States received a diagnosis of ovarian cancer. About two-thirds of them will not receive adequate care.

Ovarian cancer is the fifth deadliest cancer among women in the US, but remains one of the least widely recognized.

Together, we can work to bring these numbers down.

Please donate to help impact the lives of women everywhere.

Common Symptoms of Ovarian Cancer:

Bloating

Pelvic or abdominal (belly) pain

Trouble eating or feeling full quickly

Urinary symptoms (such as urgency or frequency)

Risk factors include a family history of ovarian, breast, or colorectal cancer or a family history of carrying the BRCA gene mutation.

For further information reference

American Cancer Society: https://www.cancer.org/cancer/types/ovarian-cancer/about.html

Ovarian Cancer Research Alliance:

https://ocrahope.org/