Sneaky Symptoms Prevent Early Detection of Ovarian Cancer

Like most cancers, early detection of ovarian cancer is extremely important. However, only around 20 percent of cases are diagnosed early enough to effectively treat the disease. One of the main reasons ovarian cancer is so difficult to detect is because the symptoms can be very subtle and often times, they’re the same symptoms that might arise from a common cold or other “minor” health issues.

The main difference? The symptoms of ovarian cancer will occur daily and they won’t subside. But if you’re not sure what the exact symptoms are for ovarian cancer, Activebeat.com had a great article reviewing some things to look out for - here are some of them:  

Abdominal Pain

Pain in the pelvic area or belly that feels very different from normal indigestion and menstrual problems (i.e., cramps) is indicative of ovarian cancer. Most patients complained of abdominal pain that persisted for longer than 2 weeks, and wasn’t associated with their period, diarrhea, or the stomach flu.

Indigestion

Persistent indigestion, gas, nausea, or other gastro-intestinal issues, like heartburn, are quite common and persistent of ovarian cancer.

Loss of Appetite

Ovarian cancer is known to cause an abrupt loss of appetite that’s normally out of character for the person affected. This is because the cancer impacts metabolism—or the breakdown of food into energy that fuels the body.

Bloating

Frequent bloating or gas pain in your belly or pelvis that doesn’t go away is another symptom of ovarian cancer. For instance, if your abdominals bloat so much that your clothes fit tighter around your waist so suddenly and without diet or activity changes—this may be cause for a doctor’s visit.

Urinary Frequency

Urinary problems, such as being overwhelmed by a sudden urge to urinate as well as peeing more often than usual is a sign of ovarian cancer—this can include bouts of incontinence (complete loss of bladder control before you can get to a bathroom) that will gradually worsen over a few weeks.

Click here to learn about more symptoms of ovarian cancer at Activebeat.com.

Coping With Cancer

Cancer is a disease that affects family members and loved ones as well as the one diagnosed. Coping with the news that someone close to you has cancer can be stressful and emotional, but you don’t have to do it alone. Each person may deal with diagnosis differently, but there are resources that you can look to help guide you and your family through this difficult time.

“How a family handles cancer depends a lot on how the family has dealt with problems in the past. Those who are used to communicating openly and sharing feelings are usually able to talk about how cancer is affecting them. Families who solve their problems as individuals instead of a team might have more trouble coping with cancer.

Cancer treatment includes care for the patient and the family, not just the cancer. A mental health professional may already be a part of the cancer care team. If not, talk with the doctor or nurse to learn about other resources that can help you and your family cope with cancer.

People with cancer often say that lack of communication in their families is a problem. Changes in responsibilities can cause resentment and anxiety. Some family members may not feel comfortable openly discussing their feelings. Other family members may avoid the person with cancer because they feel as if they have nothing to offer, don’t know how to act, or feel they can’t do anything to help make the situation better. These factors can all make families more distant at a time when they need to pull together. Many families need help with this. Through family counseling, members can learn to deal with changes within the family and discuss their feelings more comfortably.”

Find out more about coping with cancer here.

Who Should Get Tested 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.

Ovarian Cancer: Statistics And Facts

When talking about women’s health issues we often immediately think about breast cancer, the most common type of cancer that affects women. But with so much discussion and dialogue focused on that issue it’s easy to forget that all women are also at risk of developing five types of gynecologic cancers: cervical, ovarian, uterine, vaginal, and vulvar.  And not only are all women at risk of developing one of these cancers, but the risk of that happening also increases with age.

Today we want to talk about ovarian cancer, which affects about 20,000 women each year and is the deadliest of the five gynecologic cancers. Roughly 44% of women survive 5 years or more after a diagnosis.

The Centers For Disease Control and Prevention report that, “Among women in the United States, ovarian cancer is the eighth most common cancer and the fifth leading cause of cancer death, after lung and bronchus, breast, colorectal, and pancreatic cancers. Ovarian cancer causes more deaths than any other cancer of the female reproductive system, but it accounts for only about 3% of all cancers in women.”

One of the reasons ovarian cancer is so dangerous is that it’s harder to detect than other cancers. Because of this women should always monitor for signs of trouble and speak to their doctors about their risk of developing ovarian cancer. Mayoclinic.org reports that symptoms of ovarian cancer include:

• Abdominal bloating or swelling
• Quickly feeling full when eating
• Weight loss
• Discomfort in the pelvis area
• Changes in bowel habits, such as constipation
• A frequent need to urinate

All women are at risk of developing ovarian cancer, though most cases appear in women aged 55 and up. A family history of ovarian or breast cancer, a higher weight or BMI, the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes, and certain reproductive issues can all also contribute to a woman’s risk of developing ovarian cancer.

Click this link to read more about ovarian cancer statistics, risk factors, and symptoms.

What is Ovarian Cancer?

Often touted as “The Silent Killer of women,” ovarian cancer is often misunderstood at best. Afflicting at least 5,500 women in the US each year, ovarian cancer rings in as one of the leading causes of death in females. Before understanding why this disease is so devastating, it is important to understand what it is and how it forms. This article, courtesy of medicalnewstoday.com, will help to shed some light on the parts of the body this cancer effects and the genesis of the condition.

Ovarian cancer is any cancerous growth that may occur in different parts of the ovary. The majority of ovarian cancers arise from the epithelium (outer lining) of the ovary. According to the American Cancer Society it is the 8th most common cancer among women in the USA (excluding non-melanomaskin cancers). In the UK ovarian cancer is the fifth most common cancer among females, after breast cancer, bowel cancer, lung cancer and uterine cancer (cancer of the uterus).

Approximately 5,500 women in the UK and 21,000 women in the USA are diagnosed with ovarian cancer each year. Worldwide, around 140,000 women die of ovarian cancer every year.

Tragically, the overall five year survival rate is only 46 per cent in most developed countries (it is lower for more advanced stages). However, according to the National Cancer Institute, if diagnosis is made early, before the tumor has spread, the five year survival rate is nearer 93 per cent. In 2009 scientists in the US said that current tests for diagnosing ovarian cancer are not good enough .

Even modern screening tests for ovarian cancer, which include a blood test for the CA 125 marker, combined with ultrasound, often result in unnecessary surgery and "..are failing to catch early signs of the disease..", a study at the University of Alabama at Birmingham Comprehensive Cancer Center revealed.

What are the ovaries?

The ovary is the female gonad, while the testis is the male gonad. A gonad is a reproductive gland that produces germ cells (gametes). A male sperm is a gamete, and a female egg is also a gamete. Each human gamete has 23 chromosomes, half the number of chromosomes contained in most types of human body cells. 

The ovary, also known as the egg sac, is one of a pair of reproductive glands in women. The ovaries are located at either side of the uterus (womb), in the pelvis. Each ovary is about the size and shape of an almond. The ovaries produce ova (eggs) and female hormones, such as estrogen and progesterone. These hormones regulate the menstrual cycle, pregnancy, and control the development of female characteristics, such as body shape, body hair, breasts, etc.

During the female menstrual cycle, which lasts about one month, one egg is released from one of the two ovaries - the egg travels through the fallopian tube and into the uterus. This is known as ovulation.

Cancer of the ovary can spread to other parts of the reproductive system as well as surrounding areas, such as the stomach, vagina and uterus. Ovarian cancer more commonly occurs in women aged 65 or over, but can affect women of any age.

What is cancer?

Cancer is a class of diseases characterized by out-of-control cell growth. There are over 100 different types of cancer that occur in various parts of the body - each is classified by the type of cell that is initially affected.

Usually our cells divide (multiply, form new ones) only when old and dying ones need to be replaced. However, the controls that regulate when a cell divides as well as when a cell should die sometimes become faulty. This may result in cells not dying when they should, while additional cells are still being added - an uncontrolled accumulation of cells. Eventually a mass of cells is formed - a tumor. 

Malignant and benign tumors

Tumors that stay in one place and demonstrate limited growth are usually considered to be benign. Malignant, or more dangerous tumors emerge when two things occur:

Invasion - the cancerous cell manages to move throughout the body using the blood or lymph systems, destroying healthy tissue - this process is called invasion.

Angiogenesis - the cancerous cells manage to divide and grow, making new blood vessels to feed themselves.

Metastasis
When a tumor manages to spread to other parts of the body and grows, invading and destroying other healthy tissues, it is said to have metastasized. This process itself is called metastasis, and the result is a serious condition that is extremely hard to treat.

Education is one of the most important tools we can use to protect ourselves against ovarian cancer. Learning about the causes of the disease is simply the first step on the road to decreasing the number of victims of the disease.  

New Research Programs Will Study Genetic Risk For Ovarian Cancer

The USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center recently announced that its team will expand their ovarian cancer research efforts thanks to the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The NIH awarded two grants totaling over $4 million to the USC Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center for use on two important ovarian cancer research projects.

One project being funded by these grants will focus on studying how certain genes and mutations may impact a woman’s risk of developing ovarian cancer. Set to last at least five years, this project is being led by Simon Gayther, a professor of preventive medicine at the Keck School of Medicine of USC, and Susan Ramus, an associate professor of preventive medicine.

The hope is that this project will ultimately contribute to a decreased ovarian cancer mortality.

“We expect to identify, in the population, ovarian cancer susceptibility genes that confer substantial risks of ovarian cancer,” Gayther said about the project. “We will calculate these risks by comparing the frequency of gene mutations in ovarian cancer cases compared to unaffected controls. We expect the size of disease risks caused by these genes to be quite substantial, and anticipate this information could soon be used to screen unaffected women in the population to identify those individuals at greatest risk.”

In addition to working on this first project, Susan Ramus is leading the second ovarian cancer research study being funded by these grants. This second project, which is currently the world’s largest ovarian cancer tumor tissue study, will evaluate signs of ovarian cancer risk at a molecular level. This could help researchers develop new ways of testing for and treating ovarian cancer and is a significant endeavor, as no treatment for ovarian cancer based on tumor profiling currently exists.

Click here to read more about these two important ovarian cancer research projects.

Dogs: An Oncologist’s Best Friend?

We all know that dogs are man’s best friend. But soon, they could also be a doctor’s best friend as well.

Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania’s Work Dog Center have discovered that dogs can detect the smell given off by certain chemical compounds that are produced during the early stages of ovarian cancer.

Every year, over 20,000 Americans are diagnosed with ovarian cancer, but due to generic symptoms like bloating, weight gain, and constipation, it can be difficult for physicians to offer a precise diagnosis. However, like most cancers, early diagnosis is key. In fact, women who are diagnosed with ovarian cancer in its early stages have a five-year survival rate of 90 percent. And this discovery could very well help diagnoses ovarian cancer before it spreads.

Over at Monell Chemical Sensess Chemical Center, researchers are trying to replicate the dogs’ ability with an electronic sensor. Said organic chemist George Preti on The Animal Rescue Site’s blog:

“Because if the dogs can do it, then the question is, “Can our analytical instruments do it?” We think we can,” said George Preti, Monell organic chemist.

Although dogs’ senses haven’t directly made any major breakthroughs for ovarian cancer, the American Cancer Society is hopeful that dogs may eventually play a role in patient care. Cindy Otto, director of the Working Dog Center, on the other hand, can see this happening sooner than later:

“If we can figure out what those chemicals are, what that fingerprint of ovarian cancer is that’s in the blood — or maybe even eventually in the urine or something like that — then we can have that automated test that will be less expensive and very efficient at screening those samples,” said Cindy Otto, director of the Working Dog Center.

Click here to read the full story on the Animal Rescue Site’s blog!