My Story

I’m Lori Gilman and here is my story....

well, part of it, since the rest has not been written yet :)

I was recently diagnosed with Stage 3C Ovarian Cancer. Unfortunately, there is no cure for Ovarian Cancer - yes, you read that correctly - THERE IS NO CURE FOR OVARIAN CANCER. “NED” (which means No Evidence of Disease) is the best we can hope for after getting this diagnosis. Thankfully, after several months of chemotherapy and a 10-hour surgery, I am currently NED, and I am using my voice to help others avoid this horrible disease. During my journey fighting Ovarian Cancer, I learned that I am “BRCA2 Positive”, which put me at up to a 45% greater risk of having Ovarian Cancer and up to an 85% chance of having breast cancer. The BRCA gene is also linked to pancreatic and prostate cancer and skin cancer. Identifying the gene is critical to avoiding a devastating diagnosis. None of the many doctors I visited over the last few decades ever suggested that I do genetic testing for the BRCA gene even though I gave them my family history (my father had prostate cancer, which is linked to this gene). Nor did they suggest it due to my being of Jewish descent, which increases the chances dramatically. That suggestion could have saved me from this HELL I am living. The silver lining, if there is a silver lining, is that because of my experience, my 25 year old daughter tested and found out she is BRCA2 positive. She now has the knowledge to take every precaution so that she will not be in the same position I found myself in.

Project Coffee Clutch is a brand of coffee mugs with words of wisdom by entrepreneurial women with one goal...to start important conversations. (our name comes from the word Kaffeeklatsch which is a social gathering for informal conversation at which coffee is served.) For every mug sold Project Coffee Clutch 
will donate 50% of the profits to  BRCA genetic reseach and underfunded gynecological cancers. 

The bigger goal is to bring much needed awareness to the importance of BRCA gentic testing and underfunded gynecological cancers!    

Let’s start the conversation... one PROJECT COFFEE CLUTCH mug at a time!