October 11, 2007
Lehman and Goff win Health Breakthrough Award
Dr. Constance Lehman, UW professor of radiology, and Dr. Barbara Goff, UW professor of obstetrics and gynecology, have been recognized with a Ladies’ Home Journal Health Breakthrough Award for their groundbreaking discoveries in women’s health.
Lehman, director of breast imaging at the Seattle Cancer Care Alliance, was honored for her work in finding breast cancer that mammograms miss, and Goff, director of gynecologic oncology at the UW, was recognized for her work in the early diagnosis of ovarian cancer.
Lehman led a research team that looked at the effectiveness of using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to monitor women diagnosed with cancer in one breast. About 5 to 10 percent of women who have cancer in one breast will develop cancer in the other breast within 10 years. Lehman and her colleagues found that MRI can help detect the tiny cancers in the other breast early on. This can allow women to have surgery on both breasts simultaneously and help them avoid a second surgery, chemotherapy, and possibly an unnecessary mastectomy.
Ovarian cancer has traditionally been viewed as a silent disease, offering little warning to women before onset. Goff and her colleagues, however, found that many women in the early stages of the disease suffer from symptoms such as abdominal bloating, pelvic or abdominal pain, and frequent urination. The findings are especially important for ovarian cancer, since early detection can help make the deadly disease more survivable.
Ladies’ Home Journal launched the Health Breakthrough Awards in 2006 to honor doctors and researchers whose discoveries have transformed their specialties and improved the quality of health in general.
The winners were chosen through a nationwide search of more than 80 medical organizations, teaching hospitals, foundations, and government agencies. Other award-winners’ work included revolutionizing radiation treatment, modernizing emergency rooms, harvesting human stem cells, creating a bionic arm, and researching the development of better bones for women and men.
To read the article about Lehman, Goff and other recipients of the magazine’s Health Breakthrough Awards, visit http://tinyurl.com/28g4r5.
