Shame

• Most people have heard of cervical, ovarian, and perhaps womb cancer, but there is one gynaecological cancer that is seldom mentioned: vulval cancer.
• According to Cancer Research UK, 69% of vulval cancers are considered preventable.
• In late-stage cancer, the treatment may be devastating and in extreme cases can involve removing the entire vulva, so increasing awareness is vital.
• The other main condition linked to vulval cancer is LS, a chronic skin condition which typically causes intense itching and white or ashy patches.

Delayed diagnosis

• In one Danish study comparing the diagnosis time of all gynaecological cancers, vulval cancer was found to have the longest delay.
• If you are concerned you have symptoms of vulval cancer or LS, you may need to insist on being examined.
• To this end, the University of Manchester has produced a resource to teach women how to do a vulval self-examination.
• Resources such as the Great Wall of Vulva can help women understand that vulvas come in all shapes and sizes.

Treatment for vulval cancer

• However, treatment for later stage vulval cancer can be brutal.
• In England, vulval cancer incidence rates are 74% higher in the most deprived groups.
• Increased awareness could save some women from being diagnosed with later stage vulval cancer and improve survival rates.
• We should be taking vulval itching and pain seriously, talking about vulval cancer and emphasising the importance of the HPV vaccine.

• Mary of Egypt, a fourth-century saint with a large medieval following, had a thriving and active sex life.
• She admits to having had “an insatiable and unrestrained desire for passionate love”.
• Read more:
  'A promiscuous she-pope with a dilated cervix': the legend of Pope Joan, who gave birth on a horse

The antithesis of seductress

• One day, she encountered a group of young sailors bound for a pilgrimage to Jerusalem to venerate the Holy Cross.
• She went along for the ride, seducing the young men entirely for the fun and excitement of it.
• Upon attempting to enter the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, an invisible barrier prevented her from crossing the threshold.
• Physically and psychologically, she became the antithesis of seductress.

Repentance and redemption

• Because these qualities are within you and your joy, they are the opposite of devotion and sacrifice expected by God.
• But with the focus on repentance and redemption in Mary’s story, two strange qualities emerge.
• First, Mary’s repentance is proportional to her suffering in the desert.
• Second – and this is the lurid paradox – Mary’s repentance is proportional to the extent of her previous lust.

Purity and piety

• Mary’s story reflects the belief a woman’s worth and virtue were intrinsically tied to an ideal of sexual purity.
• Women were either seen as temptresses, associated with sin and debauchery, or as virtuous saints, embodying purity and piety.
• Yet it is possible to find Mary’s story touching in its own terms: the pathetic frail figure of the saint in Byzantine art captures the pathos of a person wrestling with the burden of piety.

• In May, the Surgeon General issued an Advisory highlighting our epidemic of loneliness and social isolation.
• We are here on this planet to be amongst each other, to learn from each other and to grow from each other."
• The conversation was moderated by Hollywood & Mind founder Cathy Applefeld Olson.
• Bumble recently launched its Bumble for Friends offering as a separate app "as part of our larger efforts to support kind connections," Iheme said.

• Culver City, California, Sept. 06, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- EDITORS NOTE: Click HERE FOR PRESS KIT
  For National Suicide Prevention Month this year, Didi Hirsch Mental Health Services is sharing the risk factors, warning signs and supportive resources to remind individuals that suicide is preventable.
• “Suicide remains a public health crisis impacting communities across the country, but there is hope,” said Lyn Morris, LMFT and CEO of Didi Hirsch Mental Health Services.
• “Research shows that suicide can be prevented in many cases, and anyone can take action to help a person who may be struggling.
• For youth mental health there is Teen Line, a program of Didi Hirsch, which is a national crisis and support hotline that connects youth with highly trained teen counselors who provide confidential peer support and mental health resources.