David Pocock (ACT, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

by leave—I, and also on behalf of Senators Marielle Smith, Ruston, Waters, McKenzie, Thorpe, Tyrrell, Payman, Lambie, Bell and Babet, move:

That the Senate:

(a) recognises that February is Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month, an opportunity to acknowledge the impact of ovarian cancer and all gynaecological cancers on individuals, families and communities across Australia;

(b) notes that gynaecological cancers remain among the most challenging cancers to diagnose and treat, with more than 55 per cent classified as rare, often with limited treatment options;

(c) notes with concern that ovarian cancer is the most lethal cancer affecting Australian women, and that survival outcomes have remained largely unchanged for over 50 years, at approximately 49 per cent;

(d) notes that over the next ten years an estimated 86,000 women will be diagnosed with gynaecological cancers, and that more than half are expected to be diagnosed with cancers that are currently untreatable;

(e) recognises evidence indicating that more than 90 per cent of women diagnosed with gynaecological cancers do not have access to comprehensive molecular profiling, despite its growing importance in informing diagnosis, treatment decisions and access to clinical trials;

(f) acknowledges the significant disparities in incidence and mortality, with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women, women in regional and remote areas, and women from socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds experiencing poorer outcomes; and

(g) affirms the importance of continued national efforts to improve outcomes for all women diagnosed with gynaecological cancers, including through improved access to diagnostics such as molecular profiling, better coordination of care, expanded clinical trials, strengthened research capacity, and enhanced psychosocial supports, regardless of a woman's background or postcode.

I thank the Senate for their collaboration on this motion.

Question agreed to.