TV Drama to Connect Women to Online Health
Oct. 3 -- In this week's Cybershake, we talk with actor Ally Sheedy about playing a role which she hopes will inspire millions of women to tune in and log on to the Net. Plus, we note how one company is feeling out old video games.
An Online Life Line for Women's Health
On Thursday, Oxygen Media, a 24-hour cable TV network, debuted Life on the Line, an original drama which the network hopes will send women to another media outlet: the Net.
Based on a true story, the televised drama featured actor Ally Sheedy as Chris McHugh, a mother of two, who waged a courageous battle against inflammatory breast cancer, a rare, and fast moving disease.
In preparation for the role, Sheedy says she learned how courageous and resourceful McHugh was when faced with a deadly illness which doctors had predicted would leave her with only 18-months left to live.
"McHugh turned to the Internet to find different doctors, different courses of treatment, speak to other patients, basically to empower herself and be able to take charge of her own health care and she extended her life," says Sheedy. "She lived for six years." (McHugh passed away earlier this year.)
And to encourage more women to become more proactive in their own health care, Oxygen has collaborated with several partners to establish a special online resource center geared specifically toward female medical issues.
At www.LifeontheLine.WebMD.com, visitors can learn more about treatments for illnesses such breast cancer, compare their level of medical care to broader norms, and find doctors and hospitals that suit their individual needs.
"The lesson we can learn from Chris McHugh's courageous fight against cancer is the importance of being an active patient," said Zoë Baird, president of the Markle Foundation, one of the partners in the Web project.
And while Sheedy is proud of her part in telling the McHugh story, she says that the great possible outcome of her work will be if more women log on, rather than just tune out.
