Ovarian Cancer and other Medical News Today

Women’s Health

Ovarian Cancer & You.

What’s going on?  Christiane Amanpour, a CNN journalist, just told us of her recent Ovarian Cancer diagnosis. Christiane recently had surgery and is now undergoing chemotherapy for treatment.

What I’d like you to know:

Over 22,000 women are diagnosed with Ovarian Cancer yearly.  And, about 13,000 die from it.  The numbers are going up.

Ovarian Cancer is common in women who are older than 60 years of age.  Even though the total number of ovarian cancer diagnosis is small–there are ways to even reduce that number.

Why you should care:

The good news here is that there are ways to reduce your risk.  A lot of science is showing that being at an ideal body weight & using oral contraceptives decreases a woman’s risk of developing ovarian cancer.

What else:   I’d like you to know that Ovarian Cancer runs in families.  So, do some digging into your family history and find out:

1. If anyone has had ovarian & colon cancer.
2. If you or any family members are positive for the BRAC-1 gene.
3. If the answer is yes to even one of the points above, then,  go and talk to your doctor!

Know this:  If caught early, most forms of Ovarian Cancer are treatable!

✔ The Expert Opinion

More white women than black women get ovarian cancer.  But, black women die at a much higher rate than white women.  Some reasons for this could be that ovarian cancer is diagnosed later in black women, black women tend to have higher rates of obesity and other chronic illnesses. And, black women as a whole are less likely to use birth control.  

Finally, it could also be that some doctors are not properly trained to assess Ovarian Cancer in women of color. And, this is something that the medical community is working to improve!

Common Symptoms of Ovarian Cancer

In the start, Ovarian Cancer tends to have vague symptoms. Look out for issues like changes in your bowels, abdominal bloating, constipation, and vague abdominal pain.  So, you need to pay attention to your body and listen to what it’s telling you. If the symptoms don’t go away, then it may be time to talk to your healthcare team.

The early symptoms are NOT very noticeable. 

So, start paying attention to your body now & speak up if something feels odd or different.