The Importance of Gynecologic Disease Research
In the United States this year, approximately 84,000 women will be diagnosed with gynecologic cancer and almost 27,000 women are expected to die of their disease. Endometrial cancer is the fourth most common form of cancer in women and ovarian cancer is the fourth most frequent cause of cancer related mortality. The negative impact of gynecologic disease on the expanding female component of our nations’ military forces as well as the group of retired and dependent female military health care beneficiaries is continuing to grow.
According to statistics from the Department of Health and Human Services, annual health care expenditures for gynecologic tumors are staggering and continue to rise. The inpatient treatment of gynecologic cancer costs over $2.1 billion dollars each year and when one also includes treatment of benign gynecologic tumors, the cost rises to more than seven billion health care dollars spent annually.