Gynecological cancers underline the importance of early diagnosis for women in New York and across the United States. These types of cancers, which affect the female reproductive system, can have a severe and deadly impact on women’s health. However, many are quite treatable if they are diagnosed and treated early in their development. Delayed diagnosis, on the other hand, can have severe consequences for a woman with gynecological cancer.

New York legislators have agreed on a compromise to extend the deadline for filing certain medical malpractice claims. The law, which passed the state senate and assembly on Jan. 30, changes the statute of limitations for missed cancer diagnosis cases from 15 months to 30 months after the patient discovers the error. The passage comes two days after Gov. Andrew Cuomo and legislative leaders announced an agreement on the measure.

Some New York women who have heart attacks may not recognize their symptoms because those symptoms tend to differ from the more highly-publicized ones suffered by men. Furthermore, medical professionals may not treat women’s heart attacks as aggressively as men’s. The Journal of the American Heart Association has published research that says women are more likely to die in the year after a heart attack than men. The reason appears to be the type of care women receive in the wake of such an attack.