Greenwich Hospital and the Town of Greenwich Partner to Announce New Program to Screen Earlier for Breast and Ovarian Cancers

Greenwich Hospital is launching a new physician education program called the MAT Education Program to help doctors recognize potential early signs of breast and ovarian cancer in an effort to diagnose both diseases much sooner.

On May 1st at 6:30 pm at  Greenwich Town Hall First Selectman Peter Tesei, will proclaim MAT Education Awareness Day, in honor of the 20-year anniversary that Marilyn Ann Trahan (Josephs) (MAT), succumbed to Ovarian Cancer in 1999.

The proclamation presentation is part of the effort to encourage the medical community to become MAT educated by October 31 of this year, to protect and save the lives of the women of Greenwich from Breast and Ovarian cancers.

The curriculum was developed by physicians at Smilow Cancer Hospital at Yale New Haven and Yale Cancer Center at the behest of Greenwich resident Kaile Josephs Zagger who lost her mother, Marilyn Ann Trahan (MAT) 20 years ago to ovarian cancer.

Studies show that women with Ovarian Cancer have had the disease for more than 24 months and have seen four or more physicians, and that women diagnosed with Breast Cancer have had the disease on average for more than one year.

Breast and Ovarian Cancer have myriad signs, symptoms, risk factors to include genetics and family history – and it is an artful skill putting the pieces of those stories together to make a proper diagnosis or proper referral.

The medical community has been unable to solve for this problem, leading to all too often, late stage diagnosis for both diseases – until now.