September is National Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month

1 in 72 women are diagnosed with ovarian cancer and 85% of those women are diagnosed in the later stages.

September is National Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month and cities across the nation will turn teal, the official color of ovarian cancer. This year, 22,000 women of all ages will be diagnosed with ovarian cancer. Due to the subtleness of ovarian cancer symptoms, and because there is no reliable test for early detection, ovarian cancer is difficult to diagnose and easily confused with other ailments. When ovarian cancer is detected early, more than 90% of women will survive longer than five years. However, only 19% of women are diagnosed in the early stages. When diagnosed in advanced stages, the chance of five-year survival is only 44%.

The Laurel Auto Group Pro-Am Charity Golf Classic has helped raise hundreds of thousands of dollars to support local cancer education and awareness efforts. If you’re interested in helping in the fight against ovarian cancer, please consider making a tax-deductible donation to:

Ann Harris Smith Foundation for Gynecological Cancer Awareness

c/o The Community Foundation for the Alleghenies

116 Market Street

Johnstown, PA 15901

The purpose of this foundation is to educate women and their families on the prevention and detection of gynecological cancers and to improve the overall survival rate and quality of life for these women.

Who Should Be Screened for Ovarian Cancer?

Ovarian cancer was known as “the silent killer” for many years in the past. That’s because symptoms may be unnoticeable or too similar to other ailments to easily detect. This meant that many women in the past would believe they had a run-of-the-mill problem, only time find out that they had ovarian cancer. However, today, women are better able to get screened to determine if they may have cancer or be at risk for ovarian cancer. According to Healthline.com, “One of the most disappointing facts is that in over 30 years, the mortality rates for ovarian cancer have not been reduced. However, women diagnosed in the early stages have a much higher five-year survival rate than those diagnosed at later stages.”

The risk factors for ovarian cancer are wide-reaching. If you have one of the following risk factors, you may wish to pay special attention to testing for ovarian cancer:

·         Family history of ovarian cancer.

·         Having your first menstrual cycle early in life.

·         Late menopause.

·         Being 65 years old or older.

·         Never having been pregnant.

·         Being overweight or obese.

·         Getting an endometriosis diagnosis.

·         Having breast cancer.

·         Never taking birth control.

Today, there are three major screening methods to determine if you have ovarian cancer. These are a pelvic exam, a CA-125 array, or a transvaginal ultrasound. However, recent evidence shows that these screenings may cause more harm than good, because of a large number of false results (positive and negative). As StopCancerFund.org points out, “In September 2012, the United States Preventative Services Task Force recommended against annual ovarian cancer screening tests for women who do not have symptoms.[3] They concluded that women who have no signs or symptoms, no family history of breast or ovarian cancer, and no increased risk based on their genes do not benefit from screening and may even be harmed by it.”

If you’re concerned about the risk of ovarian cancer, you can simply ask your gynecologist or primary care physician to pay extra attention to your ovaries and reproductive organs when you’re in for your yearly checkup.

Study shows Young Women Can be Too Self-Conscious to Seek Medical Help

A recent British study from Ovarian Cancer Action shows that women may be too embarrassed to seek gynecological help. More than half of these women turned to Google for medical answers.

Here’s an excerpt from the article by Ovarian Cancer Action:

The study shows that young British women (aged 18-24) are four times less likely to go to a doctor with a sexual health issue than their 55-64 year old counterparts.

Among the top reasons for young women avoiding going to the doctor were being scared of being intimately examined (48%), being embarrassed to talk about sexual health issues (44%) and not knowing what words to use (26%) – with two thirds (66%) saying they’d be embarrassed to say the word ‘vagina’. The embarrassment factor drops considerably as we get older, with just one in 10 (11%) women aged 65 or over saying they’d be shy saying ‘vagina’ to a healthcare professional.

Other words to cause considerable embarrassment among the young - but not so much among older women – include ‘orgasm’ (64% and 21% respectively), ‘labia’ (60% and 14% respectively),  and ‘discharge’ (56% and 5% respectively).

Instead of seeking medical help, more than half of younger women (57%) say they would turn to google, with an additional one in five (17%) preferring to confide in their mums. Just 17% of the younger age group say they would initially seek medical help if they suspected a gynaecological or sexual health problem, compared with 68% of the older age group, who would turn to a doctor straight away.

One in six have made appointments only to cancel them because they were too embarrassed to discuss gynaecological issues. A further one in five (18%) have completely ignored a sexual health issue.

Katherine Taylor, Acting Chief Executive at Ovarian Cancer Action, said: “The reluctance to see a doctor for gynaecological issues is really worrying and, while many of us have turned to the internet for help, googling symptoms is not a substitute for proper medical attention. Illnesses such as ovarian cancer - which kills a woman every two hours in the UK – is much easier to treat if it’s diagnosed early, so it’s incredibly important that women feel empowered to talk about their health and feel comfortable visiting healthcare professionals.

For the full article from Ovarian Cancer Action, follow this link: http://ovarian.org.uk/news-and-campaigning/article/young-women-too-self-conscious-to-seek-medical-help

Remember: It's Not a Uniformly Fatal Prognosis

Women with ovarian cancer are living longer than expected. A new study from the University of California helps upend the notion that women with ovarian cancer always face a poor chance of survival.

The following article excerpt comes from Futurity:

LONG-TERM SURVIVORS

For the study, researchers used the California Cancer Registry to analyze data reported on all California residents diagnosed with epithelial ovarian cancer between 1994 and 2001. Epithelial ovarian cancer is the most common type of ovarian cancer, occurring in nine out of 10 cases.

Of the 11,541 patients in the registry database, 3,582 (31 percent) survived more than 10 years. This was the first time that research has looked at 10-year trajectories for patients; most survival studies have looked only at 5-year survival or less.

As expected, the study shows that the majority of the long-term survivors were younger, had early-stage disease when they were diagnosed, and their tumors were of a lower-risk tissue type.

But what struck the researchers was that of the 3,582 long-term survivors, 954 of them had been considered to be at high risk of dying from their disease, either because of their tumor stage, grade, or older age at diagnosis.

For the entire article which includes a woman’s personal story and why many women are beating the odds please visit the link: http://www.futurity.org/women-ovarian-cancer-978612/

UPMC Cancer Center Receives 'Outstanding' Rating

Living in the Pittsburgh area undoubtedly has many benefits, one of them being the numerous numbers of great hospitals in the area. You can’t throw a rock in Pittsburgh without hitting a nationally ranked  hospital (disclaimer: please don’t throw rocks!).

Every year the National Cancer Institute ranks cancer centers and hospitals in their designated network, and the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute (UPCI) has been ranked among the highest.

Here’s an excerpt from the article posted by the 90.5 WESA:

The University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute (UPCI) has been rated “outstanding” by the National Cancer Institute and has been designated as a Comprehensive Cancer Center.

“Each five years we have to go through a process of self-assessment and an evaluation by outside colleagues and we’re really please this year we were labeled as ‘outstanding’ among the most elite, and of course we’re extremely excited about the funding that this brings to help to support our important research and care missions,” said Dr. Nancy E. Davidson, director of UPCI and UPMC Cancer Center.

That designation also comes with a grant.

“The funding is about $25 million over five years, and it helps to fund the infrastructure to support our research and clinical trials at the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute,” said Davidson.

That research includes studies such as DNA repair and its role in developing cancer or the ties between the immune system and a predisposition to cancer. In addition, Davidson said clinical trials looking at different types of cancers are critical along with community health education.

Congratulations to UPCI! For the full article from the 90.5 WESA follow the link: http://wesa.fm/post/upmc-cancer-center-rated-outstanding-national-cancer-institute

Recognizing The Stages of Ovarian Cancer

Staging is the process of finding out how widespread a cancer is. Most ovarian cancers that are not obviously widespread are staged at surgery. One of the goals of surgery for ovarian cancer is to take tissue samples for diagnosis and staging. To stage the cancer, samples of tissues are taken from different parts of the pelvis and abdomen and examined under the microscope.

Staging is very important because ovarian cancers have different prognoses at different stages and are treated differently. The accuracy of the staging may determine whether or not a patient will be cured. If the cancer isn’t accurately staged, then cancer that has spread outside the ovary might be missed and not treated. Once the cancer has been given a stage it does not change, even when it comes back (recurs) or spreads (metastasizes) to new locations.

Stage I

The cancer is only within the ovary (or ovaries) or fallopian tube(s). It has not spread to organs and tissues in the abdomen or pelvis, lymph nodes, or to distant sites.

Stage IA (T1a, N0, M0): Cancer has developed in one ovary, and the tumor is confined to the inside of the ovary; or the cancer has developed in one fallopian tube, and is only inside the fallopian tube. There is no cancer on the outer surface of the ovary or fallopian tube. Laboratory examination of washings from the abdomen and pelvis did not find any cancer cells.

Stage IB (T1b, N0, M0): Cancer has developed in both ovaries or fallopian tubes but not on their outer surfaces. Laboratory examination of washings from the abdomen and pelvis did not find any cancer cells.

Stage IC (T1c, N0, M0): The cancer is present in one or both ovaries or fallopian tubes and any of the following are present:

• The tissue (capsule) surrounding the tumor broke during surgery, which could allow cancer cells to leak into the abdomen and pelvis (called surgical spill). This is stage IC1.
• Cancer is on the outer surface of at least one of the ovaries or fallopian tubes or the capsule (tissue surrounding the tumor) has ruptured (burst) before surgery (which could allow cancer cells to spill into the abdomen and pelvis). This is stage IC2
• Laboratory examination found cancer cells in fluid or washings from the abdomen. This is stage IC3.

Stage II

The cancer is in one or both ovaries or fallopian tubes and has spread to other organs (such as the uterus, fallopian tubes, bladder, the sigmoid colon, or the rectum) within the pelvis. It has not spread to lymph nodes or distant sites.

Stage IIA (T2a, N0, M0): Either

• Cancer that started in the ovaries has spread to or has invaded (grown into) the uterus or the fallopian tubes, or both,
• that started in the fallopian tubes has spread to the ovaries, the uterus or both.

Stage IIB (T2b, N0, M0): The cancer has grown into other nearby pelvic organs such as the bladder, the sigmoid colon, or the rectum.

Stage III

The cancer is in one or both ovaries or fallopian tubes, and one or both of the following are present:

• has spread beyond the pelvis to the lining of the abdomen
• has spread to lymph nodes in the back of the abdomen (retroperitoneal lymph nodes)

Stage IIIA1 (T1 or T2, N1, M0): Cancer is in one or both ovaries or fallopian tubes, and it may have spread or grown into nearby organs in the pelvis. Areas of cancer spread are found in retroperitoneal lymph nodes, but there are no other areas of cancer spread.

• IIIA1(i): the areas of cancer spread in the lymph nodes is 10 mm (millimeters) across or smaller
• IIIA1(ii): the areas of cancer spread in the lymph nodes is greater than 10 mm across

Stage IIIA2 (T3a2, N0 or N1, M0): Cancer is in one or both ovaries or fallopian tubes, and it may have spread or grown into nearby organs in the pelvis. During surgery, no cancer is visible to the naked eye in the abdomen (outside of the pelvis). However, when biopsies are checked under a microscope, tiny deposits of cancer are found in the lining of the upper abdomen. The cancer may also have spread to retroperitoneal lymph nodes, but it has not spread to distant sites.

Stage IIIB (T3b, N0 or N1, M0): There is cancer in one or both ovaries or fallopian tubes, and it may have spread or grown into nearby organs in the pelvis. Deposits of cancer large enough for the surgeon to see, but 2 cm (about 3/4 inch) or smaller across, are in the abdomen. These deposits may be on the outside (the capsule) of the liver or spleen. Cancer may have also spread to the lymph nodes, but it has not spread to the inside of the liver or spleen or to distant sites.

Stage IIIC (T3c, N0 or N1, M0): The cancer is in one or both ovaries or fallopian tubes, and it may have spread or grown into nearby organs in the pelvis. Deposits of cancer larger than 2 cm (about 3/4 inch) across are seen in the abdomen and these may be on the outside (the capsule) of the liver or spleen. Cancer may have also spread to the lymph nodes, but it has not spread to the inside of the liver or spleen or to distant sites.

Stage IV (any T, any N, M1)

This is the most advanced stage of ovarian cancer. In this stage the cancer has spread to the inside of the spleen, liver, lungs, or other organs located outside the peritoneal cavity. (The peritoneal cavity is the area enclosed by the peritoneum, a membrane that lines the inner abdomen and some of the pelvis and covers most of its organs.)

Stage IVA: Cancer cells are found in the fluid around the lungs (this is called a malignant pleural effusion) with no other areas of cancer spread outside the pelvis or peritoneal cavity.

Stage IVB: Cancer has spread to the inside of the spleen or liver, to lymph nodes besides the retroperitoneal lymph nodes, and/or to other organs or tissues outside the peritoneal cavity. This includes the lungs, the brain, and the skin.

For more information on the stages of ovarian cancer, please visit Cancer.org which has numerous resources and information on ovarian cancer.

For the full article regarding the stages of ovarian cancer, please follow the link: http://www.cancer.org/cancer/ovariancancer/detailedguide/ovarian-cancer-staging

Increased Physical Activity is a Form of Cancer Prevention

With the advances in technology that our society has seen, there’s no argument that we do much more sitting than we used to. Women who spend a lot of their leisure time sitting may be at increased risk of multiple myeloma, breast and ovarian cancers, according to a study published in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers, and Prevention:

The link between sitting time and cancer risk is relatively unstudied, despite extensive evidence suggesting a link between cancer prevention and physical activity.

Research is increasingly investigating the adverse consequences of spending a lot of time sitting, as our sitting time has increased in recent decades, due in part to changes in transportation and the widespread use of computers and video games.

The American Cancer Society say in their guidelines that while it is not clear how excess body fat, consuming too many calories and not getting enough exercise raise cancer risk, "there is no question that they are linked to an increased risk of many types of cancer and that they are a serious and growing health problem."

The society recommends that adults should get at least 150 minutes of moderate intensity or 75 minutes of vigorous intensity activity each week, and that it is preferable if these bouts of exercise are spread throughout the week.

Children and teens, meanwhile, are advised to get at least 1 hour of moderate or vigorous intensity activity each day, with vigorous activity on at least 3 days each week.

The society adds that physical activity above anyone's usual level of exercise also carries many health benefits.

For the full article from Medical News Today, please follow the link: http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/296883.php

Adapting to Lifestyle Changes

Getting diagnosed with cancer is the hardest thing anyone would ever have to go through. You're forced to make life changes that you may have never expected. Adapting to your new lifestyle may be difficult and scary but, in the end, it’s what’s best for you body and mind.

Cancer.org has provided some helpful advice when it comes to adapting to new lifestyle changes:

Making healthier choices

For many people, a diagnosis of cancer helps them focus on their health in ways they may not have thought much about in the past. Are there things you could do that might make you healthier? Maybe you could try to eat better or get more exercise. Maybe you could cut down on the alcohol, or give up tobacco. Even things like keeping your stress level under control may help. Now is a good time to think about making changes that can have positive effects for the rest of your life. You will feel better and you will also be healthier.

You can start by working on those things that worry you most. Get help with those that are harder for you. For instance, if you are thinking about quitting smoking and need help, call the American Cancer Society at 1-800-227-2345. The tobacco cessation and coaching service can help increase your chances of quitting for good.

Eating better

Eating right can be hard for anyone, but it can get even tougher during and after cancer treatment. Treatment may change your sense of taste. Nausea can be a problem. You may not feel like eating and lose weight when you don't want to. Or you may have gained weight that you can't seem to lose. All of these things can be very frustrating.

If treatment caused weight changes or eating or taste problems, do the best you can and keep in mind that these problems usually get better over time. You may find it helps to eat small portions every 2 to 3 hours until you feel better. You might also want to ask your cancer team about seeing a dietitian, an expert in nutrition who can give you ideas on how to deal with these treatment side effects.

One of the best things you can do after cancer treatment is to start healthy eating habits. You may be surprised at the long-term benefits of some simple changes, like increasing the variety of healthy foods you eat. Getting to and staying at a healthy weight, eating a healthy diet, and limiting your alcohol intake may lower your risk for a number of types of cancer, as well as having many other health benefits.

See the section called “Additional resources for ovarian cancer” to get more of our nutrition information.

Rest, fatigue, and exercise

Extreme tiredness, called fatigue, is very common in people treated for cancer. This is not a normal tiredness, but a "bone-weary" exhaustion that doesn't get better with rest. For some people, fatigue lasts a long time after treatment, and can make it hard for them to exercise and do other things they want to do. But exercise can help reduce fatigue. Studies have shown that patients who follow an exercise program tailored to their personal needs feel better physically and emotionally and can cope better, too.

If you were sick and not very active during treatment, it is normal for your fitness, endurance, and muscle strength to decline. Any plan for physical activity should fit your own situation. A person who has not been physically active will not be able to take on the same amount of exercise as someone who plays tennis twice a week. If you haven't exercised in a few years, you will have to start slowly – maybe just by taking short walks.

Talk with your health care team before starting anything. Get their opinion about your activity plans. Then, try to find a buddy so you're not doing it alone. Having family or friends involved when starting a new activity program can give you that extra boost of support to keep you going when the push just isn't there.

For the full article from cancer.org please follow the link: http://www.cancer.org/cancer/ovariancancer/detailedguide/ovarian-cancer-after-lifestyle-changes

Rearming Immune Cells Proves Successful in Treating Ovarian Cancer in Mice Trials

Ovarian cancer is such a deadly disease because it turns off the immune cells that try to fight it. Researchers and medical teams have been working tirelessly to find ways to reactivate immune cells after they’ve but shut down by ovarian cancer.

A Weill Cornell Medical College team recently discovered that disarming the gene XBP1 awakens and rearms the immune cells that successfully combat ovarian cancer. Here’s what else they had to say:

In Cell, the team reported that ovarian cancer, in later, liquified stages, oozes about inside the body, creating a toxic tumor microenvironment rife with damaging, reactive oxygen molecules. These molecules prompt the endoplasmic reticulum stress response pathway to turn on the XBP1 gene in dendritic cells (DCs). This prompts lipids to build up inside DCs and render them unable to do their job, which is to engulf cancer bits (antigen) and show them to T cells for attack.

The team is creating drugs to block XBP1 in both cancer and dendritic cells. For the paper, they injected nanoparticles, carrying a genetic molecule (siRNA) that blocks XBP1, into an ovarian cancer mouse model. DCs, seeing the nanoparticles as foreigners, ingested them. Once inside the DCs, like soldiers in a Trojan Horse, the nanoparticles swarmed out, and turned XBP1 off. This freed the dendritic cells to get to work warning T cells about the cancer.

“Probably the most important and clinically relevant finding in the paper is a demonstrated opportunity to therapeutically silence XBP1 in DCs to improve the development of antitumor immune responses,” Michael Shurin, M.D., Ph.D. (ABMLI) told Bioscience Technology. Shurin, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center Clinical Immunopathology associate director, was uninvolved in the work.

“Using nanodelivery of specific siRNA to silence the XBP1 gene of DCs in vivo, the authors demonstrated a significant reduction of tumor burden and tumor progression in mice, mediated by increased activity of tumor-specific cytotoxic T cells. These data provide a new target in key antigen-presenting cells in the tumor milieu to develop a therapeutic approach to ovarian cancer,” Shurin said.

Noted Louisiana State University tumor immunologist Paulo Rodriguez, Ph.D., to BioscienceTechnology: “Interestingly, deletion of XBP1 resulted in significant anti-tumor effects, and a dramatic transformation of tumor-associated DCs, from cells that promoted tumor growth, into populations that induced anti-tumor responses through activation of T cells.” Rodriguez was also uninvolved in the study. “These results emphasize the relevance of tumor-induced stress signaling on suppression of protective immune responses in cancer, a field that has generated significant attention over the last years.”

For the full article from Bioscience Technology, click here: http://www.biosciencetechnology.com/articles/2015/07/rearming-immune-cells-blasts-ovarian-cancer-mice

This Drug Combined with Chemo Improves Survival in Ovarian Cancer with Poor Prognosis

According to a new study, chemotherapy paired with bevacizumab will help increase the survival benefit of patients with poor prognosis of ovarian cancer. The Cancer Theapy Advisor reports,

An international, phase 3, two-arm, open-label study included 1,528 women with newly diagnosed ovarian cancer, high-risk early-stage disease or more advanced disease, and an Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status of 0 to 2. The patients were randomly assigned to arm A with standard chemotherapy (carboplatin and paclitaxel) and arm B with standard chemotherapy plus bevacizumab.

The primary endpoint was progression-free survival (PFS), and the secondary endpoint was restricted mean survival time (RMST).

After a median follow-up of 48.9 months, there was no difference in PFS between the treatment arms. Moreover, RMST was no different in the overall study population with 44.6 months (95% CI: 43.2, 45.9) in arm A and 45.5 months (95% CI: 44.2, 46.7) in arm B (P=0.85). The patients in non-high-risk group had a similar outcome with no difference in RMST with 49.7 months (95% CI: 48.3, 51.1) in arm A and 48.4 months (95% CI: 47.0, 49.9) in arm B (P=0.20).

However, in patients with poor prognosis disease, a significant difference in RMST was found where arm A had 34.5 months (95% CI: 32.0, 37.0) and arm B had 39.9 months (95% CI: 37.0, 41.7) (P=0.03).

The findings suggest that standard chemotherapy with bevacizumab shows benefit in patients with poor prognosis disease although no improvement in the overall study population.

Bevacizumab is a recombinant humanized monoclonal antibody that blocks angiogenesis by inhibiting vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGF-A.

Read the entire article here:

http://www.cancertherapyadvisor.com/gynecologic-cancer/ovarian-cancer-poor-prognosis-bevacizumab-chemotherapy-survival/article/423165/