Ovarian Cancer Research Foundation (OCRF) and News Corp Australia have launched Over It, a national campaign calling on the Australian Government to increase investment in ovarian cancer research and address the disease’s persistent survival gap.
Launched on October 11, 2026, the campaign seeks A$21 million annually for each of the next four years, totalling A$84 million, followed by sustained research investment until ovarian cancer survival exceeds 90%.
Led by The Sunday Telegraph, News Corp newspapers across Australia are bringing together research perspectives and personal stories to highlight why ovarian cancer needs greater national attention.
The Ovarian Cancer Survival Gap Behind the Campaign
In its LinkedIn announcement, OCRF described ovarian cancer as Australia’s most lethal women’s cancer. The foundation highlighted a five-year survival rate of 49%, compared with rates above 90% for breast cancer, prostate cancer and melanoma.
For the ovarian cancer community, these figures reflect the experiences of patients and families facing diagnosis, treatment and uncertainty. The campaign connects those experiences with a specific request for government action: sustained funding to advance research and improve survival.
Robin Penty, CEO of the Ovarian Cancer Research Foundation, described the urgency:
“Every day, five Australian women are told the words that no one wants to hear, ‘you have ovarian cancer’. We are over ovarian cancer being overlooked and inadequately funded.“
According to her statement, three or four of the five Australian women diagnosed with ovarian cancer each day already have advanced disease, and only two or three will be alive five years later. She noted that many women the foundation speaks with knew little about ovarian cancer before their diagnosis.
Penty emphasised the potential for education, awareness and sustained investment in medical research to change these outcomes. She also thanked News Corp for helping develop the campaign and bringing national attention to ovarian cancer.
Her statement brings together two concerns driving Over It: the burden of advanced disease and the limited awareness many patients describe before their diagnosis.
Ovarian Cancer Research Foundation (OCRF)/LinkedIn
What Would A$84 Million in Research Funding Support?
The campaign’s funding priorities span prevention, early detection, treatment and public education. They include developing targeted therapies, establishing adaptive Australian clinical trials, expanding tumour profiling, and investigating ovarian cancer biology through biomarkers, artificial intelligence and advanced diagnostics.
Other priorities include understanding immune responses, studying at-risk and priority populations, and improving education about symptoms, risk and opportunities for risk reduction.
The proposal therefore addresses several points along the ovarian cancer pathway, from understanding how disease develops to identifying treatments that could improve outcomes after diagnosis.
Connecting the Campaign With Global Research Priorities
The campaign page links to a global research roadmap published in Nature Reviews Cancer, titled Rethinking Ovarian Cancer III: The Past Decade and Future Directions.
According to OCRF, the roadmap draws on contributions from 38 international researchers and patient perspectives, identifying five priorities for high-grade serous ovarian cancer:
- Prevention and early detection: Improving risk reduction and finding disease earlier.
- The tumour ecosystem: Understanding how the environment surrounding cancer influences its behaviour.
- Immunity and immunotherapy: Investigating immune responses and identifying patients who may benefit.
- Treatment resistance: Understanding why cancers stop responding and how resistance might be detected earlier.
- New therapies and trial design: Developing targeted treatments and improving how they are evaluated.
These priorities provide a broader scientific context for the campaign’s funding request, linking research investment with unresolved questions in ovarian cancer care.
A Partnership Built Around Research and Patient Voices
OCRF said it worked with News Corp on the campaign’s creation and development, providing data and information and connecting the media organisation with researchers and members of the ovarian cancer community.
In its LinkedIn announcement, the foundation recognised those who shared their personal stories with “selfless courage and great determination.”
Their participation gives the campaign a human perspective alongside its funding proposal. Researchers explain the questions that require investment, while community members show how the disease affects everyday life.
All these stats and stories can be changed with education, awareness, and most of all, sustained investment in medical research.
Why Sustained Government Investment Matters
OCRF reports that it has raised more than A$37 million for ovarian cancer research since 2000. However, the foundation argues that charitable fundraising alone cannot provide the scale of investment needed to close the survival gap.
Over It places that argument before a national audience. Its four-year funding request offers an immediate proposal, while its longer-term survival ambition calls for continuity beyond a single funding cycle.
For OCRF and News Corp Australia, the campaign is an opportunity to turn public attention into a sustained commitment to ovarian cancer research, with patients’ experiences at the centre of the discussion.
Read further on OncoDaily: Botensilimab Plus Balstilimab Shows 48% Estimated Three-Year Survival in Recurrent Ovarian Cancer at IGCS 2026
