In honor of the 200,000 women currently living in the U.S. with ovarian cancer, Newk’s Cares—the ovarian cancer awareness movement spearheaded by Newk’s Eatery—raised more than $200,000 for research of the disease during 2017. Celebrating the beginning of its fourth year, Newk’s Cares raised money through in-restaurant donations and the annual Ovarian Cycle Jackson spin celebration held in its home base of Mississippi. To date, Newk’s Cares has raised more than $720,000 for the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund Alliance with the goal of increasing the number of ovarian cancer survivors by improving the rate of early diagnosis.
“Newk’s Cares funds the work of leading ovarian cancer researchers and we engage thousands of women and their loved ones in a conversation that has life-saving potential,” says Chris Newcomb, Newk’s Eatery’s CEO and Co-Founder.
Created in 2014, Newk’s Cares has since grown from a kitchen table idea to a national campaign in partnership with OCRFA—the largest global organization dedicated to advancing ovarian cancer research while supporting women and their families. Committed to calling attention to what has been dubbed this generation’s “silent killer” and raising financial support for an ovarian cancer cure and treatment research, Newk’s Cares started with the cancer diagnosis of its co-founder, Lori Newcomb, wife of Newk’s Eatery CEO Chris Newcomb.
“When I was diagnosed with Stage IIIC ovarian cancer in 2013, I knew very little about this disease,” says Lori Newcomb. “Right now, there’s no screening test available to detect ovarian cancer early on, and that’s why it’s so important for women to be aware of the warning signs.”
Ovarian cancer is the fifth-leading cause of cancer death among women, with only 46 percent of women diagnosed surviving longer than five years. That is compared to a 90 percent survival rate for breast cancer diagnoses. Early detection and treatment increase the survival rate to more than 92 percent. Despite the 200,000 women currently living with ovarian cancer in the U.S., it receives among the least financial support of any form of gynecological or breast cancer.
Newk’s Cares is looking to change that. In honor of women living with ovarian cancer and in remembrance of those who have gone before them, Newk’s Cares rallied its 115 Newk’s restaurants and guests, and united more than 150 riders to pedal toward a cure during Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month in September. These efforts work in concert with Newk’s Cares’ year-round, in-restaurant campaign, which builds awareness of the disease, provides information about symptoms, and donates 10 cents from every water bottle sold to ovarian cancer research.
