Free Ovarian Cancer Peer Support - Minnesota | MOCA
The Minnesota Ovarian Cancer Alliance (MOCA) offers a range of free support groups and peer connections for anyone impacted by ovarian and gynecologic cancer — survivors, loved ones, and caregivers. MOCA is a Minneapolis-based nonprofit that also funds research and education, but its support offerings are built for the ordinary weeks between appointments, when the medical system has nothing scheduled and the diagnosis is still sitting there.
What to Expect
MOCA Connections is the core group offering and runs in three recurring formats. MOCA Connections–Day meets in person on a select date in the fourth week of the month, 10:00–11:30 a.m., at rotating locations around the Twin Cities metro. A virtual MOCA Connections–Day meets the third Tuesday of the month, 10:00–11:30 a.m., and MOCA Connections–Night meets virtually the third Thursday, 6:00–7:30 p.m. New members are always welcome. Alongside the groups, the MOCA Walking Group meets monthly to walk and connect — outdoors in summer, indoors in colder months, with locations and dates varying. The Young Survivor Network plans events and activities through the year and maintains a network of YSN mentors who provide phone support plus a private online group. Men of MOCA provides peer-to-peer support and mentoring for partners, husbands, brothers, and friends. Care in the Community offers one-to-one connection for anyone who cannot make a group meeting.
Who This Group Is For
Women diagnosed with ovarian or gynecologic cancer, their loved ones, and their caregivers. The Young Survivor Network is for those diagnosed before menopause — participants range from late teens to mid-40s, though there is no age requirement to join. Men of MOCA exists because the men in a patient’s life are affected too and rarely have anywhere to say so. Survivors, family members, and caregivers are all welcome at Connections meetings.
Why Peer Support Works
Ovarian cancer is comparatively uncommon, and that rarity is isolating in a specific way: most people you meet will not know anyone who has had it, and generic cancer spaces may not fit. Finding a room where the treatment vocabulary, the recurrence anxiety, and the surgical realities are already understood removes an exhausting layer of explanation. The mentor model adds something a group cannot — a single person who has been where you are and will take your call.
How to Join
All MOCA support offerings are free. For meeting links, current dates, and to RSVP for MOCA Connections, contact Program Director Stefanie Gliniany at sgliniany@mnovarian.org or 612-584-3550. MOCA’s office is at 4604 Chicago Ave, Minneapolis, MN 55407; the main line is 612-822-0500 and general questions go to info@mnovarian.org. A full calendar of support offerings and events is posted on the MOCA website.