Kerry Washington New Spokewoman For Loreal

Kerry Washington has signed on as the spokeswoman for a new ovarian cancer awareness campaign from cosmetics giant L'Oreal. The actress will appear in ads for the new Color of Hope campaign, which aims to encourage more women to get checked for signs of the disease.

"One of the reasons why I decided to work with L'Oreal is because of all the philanthropic work that they do in the community," Washington tells OK! magazine. "I feel like they're not a company that tries to take advantage of women’s insecurities by making women feel not good enough so they have to go and buy makeup to feel good about themselves. Instead, they really believe in the work of women and that women deserve to look good and feel good every single day.

"And part of that is health and their commitment to women’s health and ovarian cancer. They are really leading the way. It’s frightening how we don't have the kind of research and development that we need for ovarian cancer. When it comes to breast cancer, we know how to do early detection. The research is there, but for ovarian cancer, that just doesn't exist and by the time people know, it’s too late."

Three items have been launched for the Color of Hope campaign - a lipstick, a bag and a necklace - with all proceeds going towards the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund.

"My mom is a breast cancer survivor and part of the reason she is a survivor is because of early detection so I understand the importance of early detection. If it wasn't for the advancements in technology that allow for early detection in breast cancer, I probably wouldn't have my mother today."