Raising Awareness for Ovarian Cancer

Ovarian cancer comes along with symptoms that often feel like other things. Many women may see multiple doctors to try and get a diagnosis that matches what they’re feeling. One way to help women get a better diagnosis is to raise awareness of the disease. After all, since so many symptoms can look like other things, it’s important for women to recognize when something more serious may be going on.

That’s why awareness events can be so important. Not only do they help people to recognize the symptoms of ovarian cancer, they also help raise money for an important cause. Lots of different awareness events go on across the country, many related to sports or athletics.

One baseball team in Alabama recently held an awareness-raising baseball matchup between themselves and two other teams. They took to the field wearing teal, the color of ovarian cancer, and fans wore teal in support as well. Learn more about this event here

In Atlanta, GA, supporters of ovarian cancer rode bicycles for 6 hours indoors to raise awareness. The event, called “Ovarian Cycle,” occurs in a variety of cities across the country to help raise awareness of ovarian cancer. According to a recent article, “Ovarian Cycle was founded in Atlanta in 2004 by Bethany Diamond, in honor of her friend Debbie Green Flamm, who succumbed to the disease at age 43.”

And of course, there’s our own awareness event, The Laurel Auto Group Pro-Am Charity Golf Classic, held every year to help raise awareness of ovarian cancer. The Laurel Auto Group Pro-Am Charity Golf Classic has also helped raise hundreds of thousands of dollars to support local cancer education and awareness efforts. Each year, we come together to play golf and raise funds. Are you interested in helping in the fight against ovarian cancer? Please consider 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

We are a component fund of the Community Foundation of the Alleghenies which serves as a fiscal agent for our financial activity.

When Ovarian Cancer Looks Like Another Symptom

Ovarian cancer has been called the “silent killer,” because the symptoms can often mask themselves as other maladies. For instance, some patients with ovarian cancer may just feel that their symptoms are typical cramps or simple digestive problems. However, recent news that some hormone therapies may be linked with ovarian cancer has brought the “silent killer” to the forefront once more.

Medical professionals around the world have been reacting to this news:

“Queensland chief health officer Jeannette Young said three out of four women diagnosed with the disease did not survive.
She said February's Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month activities, including Teal Ribbon Day on February 25, reminded women to watch out for the symptoms, which could often be misleading.
"The four key symptoms are abdominal or pelvic pain, increased abdominal size or persistent abdominal bloating, the need to urinate often or urgently or feeling full after eating a small amount," Dr Young said.
"During the early stages, symptoms are often very subtle so most women are unlikely to even consider that they may have ovarian cancer."
Dr Young said if there was any doubt, women should see a GP straight away.
"I can't stress enough that women should see a doctor if any of these symptoms persist over a four-week period and are unusual for them," she said.
Ovarian cancer is a malignant tumour in one or both ovaries.
There is no cause, but risks include smoking, being overweight and aging.”

Women who suspect they have ovarian cancer will want to discuss their needs with their doctors. Understanding the symptoms and how they can mask themselves as other illnesses may be key to ensuring ongoing health.

Read the original article here: http://www.dailymercury.com.au/news/womens-stealthy-assassin/2546211/

Drink A Cuppa, Cut Your Risk

Could drinking tea cut your risk of getting ovarian cancer? According to a new study, it just might: 

More than 20,000 women are diagnosed with ovarian cancer in the USA every year according to the National Cancer Institute. The most common of these is epithelial ovarian cancer, the fifth leading cause of cancer death among women. The picture looks even more grim when you consider the survival rate: only about 44% of women affected by ovarian cancer survive beyond five years.

Now for a cheering fact, especially for the tea-lovers among us: A 2014 study by researchers at the University of East Anglia (UEA) in the UK states that “Just a couple cups of black tea daily are linked with a 31% reduction in [ovarian cancer] risk,” according to study leader Prof Aedin Cassidy.

Conducted over 3 decades upon more than 170,000 women, this is the first large scale study on the subject. Prof. Cassidy says black tea contains powerful flavonols and flavanones, two powerful sub-groups of flavonoids, which give the beverage its cancer-fighting powers.

Fortunately, black tea is the most popular tea consumed in the USA. According to the Tea Association of the U.S.A. Inc., 84% of the 79 billion servings of tea consumed every year by Americans is black tea.

Of course, the article goes on to explain that drinking black tea may simply be one part of a larger strategy to cut cancer risk, including incorporating exercise and a healthy diet into your everyday life. Learn more here: http://bit.ly/19pERsb

Why Women Need to Know the Symptoms of Ovarian Cancer

This doctor explains why knowing the symptoms of ovarian cancer can help women catch the disease in its early stages:

It's been 16 years since Jeanene Smith was diagnosed with stage 2 ovarian cancer, which her general physician caught two months after her gynecologist dismissed Smith's worries as "hysteria."

"If I'd seen 'N.E.D.' before my diagnosis, I think I would have been a better advocate for myself," said Smith, 58.

"But that long ago, women weren't really taught to look for symptoms."

The documentary "N.E.D." — an acronym for "No Evidence of Disease" — means to change that. "N.E.D." is both a movie and a rock band of six gynecologists who specialize in what the movie describes as "below the belt" cancers. "N.E.D." is screening nationally Feb. 4 at Regis Cinema theaters (the Denver showing is at 7:30 p.m. at the United Artists Denver Pavilions), and a DVD will be released later this year.

The rock band N.E.D. is front and center in the documentary, but so are the ovarian-cancer patients who are N.E.D.'s biggest groupies. They chant "N! E! D!" the way Bruce Springsteen's fans chant "Brruuuuuuce!"

"The doctors are multidimensional," Smith said. "They're not only exceptionally great doctors, but great musicians and compassionate human beings. I don't think we often see that side of doctors. We want them to solve our problems and move on."

But sometimes doctors, like Smith's dismissive gynecologist, don't solve the problems. Many think of ovarian cancer and other gynecological cancers as a disease of the elderly, not something that occurs in younger women.

"I was 42 when I was diagnosed," Smith said.

"A lot of people think that ovarian cancer is an older woman's disease. Most commonly, it's seen in women 55 or older. But it happens if you're 42. It happens if you're in your 20s. We know women of all ages who've been diagnosed with ovarian cancer. In the U.S., 20,000 women a year are diagnosed with ovarian cancer, but I think that number is higher because often the cancer has metastasized."

Dr. Joanie Mayer Hope, who grew up in Boulder and now practices medicine in Alaska, is N.E.D.'s front woman, a hard-core singer with enviable arms. She sees "N.E.D." the documentary as a way to reach people who otherwise might not give a thought to below-the-belt cancers.

"It's an untold story, with the very unusual lens of six GYNs who founded a rock band to spread the word about the women we care for," Hope said.

"It's created community discussions, and in some places, it's raised money for research."

Ovarian-cancer symptoms include abdominal pain or swelling; bloating or increased abdominal girth; constipation; fatigue; frequent urination and early satiety, or feeling full shortly after beginning a meal.

"The symptoms are so general that they apply to almost every woman," says Jeanene Smith, an ovarian- cancer survivor and associate director of the Colorado Ovarian Cancer Alliance.

"If a woman experiences even one symptom 12 or more times during the course of a month, she should ask her doctor to help her rule out ovarian cancer. There is no test for ovarian cancer. A Pap smear doesn't screen for ovarian cancer, but over 60 percent of women think it does.

"But a woman can ask her doctor to order a Trans Vaginal Ultrasound (TVU), perform a pelvic-rectal exam, and order a CA-125 blood test, which measures inflammation often present when cancer is active," she said.

Those procedures usually are covered by health insurance plans, Smith said, though they are not routinely offered, like a Pap smear or breast exam. Women who have a family history of cancer or experience symptoms may need to request those examinations.

"Knowing the symptoms and risk factors for ovarian cancer is vital," Smith said.

"Then a woman must advocate for her own health, often pushing doctors to help rule out ovarian cancer, instead of putting it on the back burner."

Click the link to read the full article: http://dpo.st/1DyxnM8