Tammy Talks Hormones: A New Book Empowering Women and Supporting the Abdominal Cancers Alliance
For many women, understanding hormonal health can be challenging, particularly when navigating changes brought on by cancer treatment or surgical menopause. A new book, Tammy Talks Hormones, aims to empower women with knowledge, encourage self-advocacy, and give back to an organization that played an important role in the author's own cancer journey.
Written by Dr. Tammy O'Rourke, NP, PhD, a nurse practitioner, educator, researcher, and ovarian cancer survivor, Tammy Talks Hormones: Generationally Speaking. Every Woman's Guide to Hormone Health explores the complexities of women's hormonal health throughout different stages of life.
And for every copy sold, $2 will be donated to the Abdominal Cancers Alliance, helping advance our mission to support patients and caregivers facing advanced abdominal cancers.
Empowering Women Through Education
Hormonal changes can affect nearly every aspect of a woman's life, yet many women struggle to find clear answers to their questions or feel that their symptoms are being dismissed.
Drawing on her professional expertise and personal experiences, Dr. O'Rourke wrote Tammy Talks Hormones to help women better understand their bodies and become more informed advocates for their health.
The book addresses hormonal health across generations, from reproductive health and fertility to perimenopause, menopause, and beyond. Its message centers on the importance of education, asking questions, and seeking individualized care.
These conversations are particularly relevant to women who experience surgical menopause following treatment for ovarian or other gynecologic cancers. The sudden hormonal changes that can follow removal of the ovaries may present physical and emotional challenges, often while patients are also navigating recovery and life after cancer.
Understanding these changes and having open conversations with healthcare providers can help women make informed decisions about their health and quality of life.
A Personal Connection to the Alliance
For Dr. O'Rourke, the importance of advocating for your health goes far beyond her professional work.
After being diagnosed with advanced ovarian cancer that had spread throughout her abdominal cavity, she experienced firsthand the challenges of navigating a complex diagnosis and finding appropriate treatment.
A second opinion ultimately connected her with specialized care from Dr. Armando Sardi, President of the Abdominal Cancers Alliance. Her treatment included extensive surgery and hyperthermic intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC), a specialized treatment used for certain cancers affecting the abdominal cavity.
Throughout her journey, Dr. O'Rourke also found support through the Abdominal Cancers Alliance. That experience inspired her to help ensure that others facing similar diagnoses have access to information, resources, and specialized care.
Her story reflects an important message at the heart of the Alliance's mission: Patients deserve to understand their options, feel empowered to ask questions, and have access to specialists experienced in treating their particular cancer.
Giving Back to Help Others
As a way of recognizing the support she received, Dr. O'Rourke has committed to donating $2 from every copy of Tammy Talks Hormones sold to the Abdominal Cancers Alliance.
These contributions will help support the Alliance's ongoing work in gynecologic and other advanced abdominal cancers, including patient education, navigation services, awareness initiatives, and connecting patients and caregivers with resources and specialized care.
We are grateful to Dr. O'Rourke for her generosity and for using her personal experience to make a difference for others.
By sharing knowledge about women's hormonal health and supporting the Alliance, she is helping bring greater attention to two important issues: the need for women to feel heard and supported in their healthcare journeys and the importance of specialized care for patients facing complex cancers.
Additional Resources: Hormone Health After Cancer
For patients who have undergone surgery for ovarian or other gynecologic cancers, questions about hormonal changes and surgical menopause may be an important part of recovery and long-term survivorship.
The Abdominal Cancers Alliance offers a resource on Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT) and Surgical Menopause, as well as a webinar, that explores what patients should know about hormone changes, potential symptoms, treatment considerations, and questions to discuss with their healthcare team.
Decisions about hormone therapy after cancer should always be individualized based on a patient's diagnosis, treatment history, and medical needs.
Purchase Tammy Talks Hormones: https://www.amazon.com/Tammy-Talks-Hormones-Generationally-Speaking/dp/1963732472/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&dib_tag=se&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.3lQGg9HfUWpBu6Y0YDrlwPKAk34y1F0EDQ1nmHj2nPI.PTJ7n7InH1S_GgvsQz21KIG7UtKHo0HbSbxWo_KyJuQ&qid=1792437484&sr=8-1
The Alliance congratulates Dr. Tammy O'Rourke on the publication of Tammy Talks Hormones and thank her for turning her personal journey into an opportunity to educate, empower, and support others.
