Ovarian Cancer Symptoms & Conditions

At one time, a diagnosis of ovarian cancer normally meant that the cancer was in the late stages and had spread to other parts of the body. But with advances in medical technology, ovarian cancer is detected earlier more often and this offers a chance at successful treatment. According to the Mayo Clinic, approximately 1 in every 5 cases of ovarian cancer is now caught before it has had a chance to spread.

Identification

• The ovaries are two small female reproductive organs found in the lower abdomen. The ovaries are responsible for creating and releasing female hormones, including estrogen, and they are also responsible for maintaining a woman's supply of eggs and making sure that eggs are regularly released to the womb through the fallopian tubes. Ovarian cancer is when a cancerous growth of cells appears on one or both of the ovaries, creating a tumor. These cancerous cells can originate at the ovaries, or they can originate in another part of the body and travel to the ovaries.

Effects

• One of the reasons that ovarian cancer can be difficult to diagnose is that the early symptoms mimic symptoms normally associated with the menstrual cycle. These symptoms include abdominal pain that may be localized to just the pelvic region, a bloating or full feeling in the abdomen and an urgent need to urinate. To make things even more confusing, ovarian cancer may also change the schedule of a woman's menstrual cycle which would make it even more difficult to tell ovarian cancer symptoms from menstrual cycle events.

Potential

• Advanced symptoms of ovarian cancer also mimic the menstrual cycle, but the difference is that these symptoms become much more severe and last longer than a typical menstrual cycle. These symptoms include bloating to the point where clothing does not fit, a drop in appetite or a decrease in food consumption because even the slightest amount of food makes the woman feel full, chronic lower back and a constant lack of energy or feeling of fatigue.

Prevention/Solution

• The preferred method of treatment for ovarian cancer is surgery. To try and contain the spread of cancerous cells, a doctor may also use chemotherapy medication, but it is rare that a doctor will use radiation treatment for ovarian cancer because radiation treatment is normally ineffective against ovarian cancer.

Considerations

• The Mayo Clinic lists obesity and a previous bouts with breast cancer as risk factors that increase the chances of contracting ovarian cancer. While the American Cancer Society indicates that having a family history of ovarian cancer increases the risk of contracting the disease by as much as 15%, there does not appear to be a genetic defect that allows the condition to spread to family members.