September is Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month

September is Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month.  I couldn't let the month go by without honoring my dear friend and colleague Michele, who lost her battle with ovarian cancer 2 years ago.

Michele Beaulieu

June 12, 1961 - June 9, 2010

An estimated 22,280 American women will be diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 2012, according to the American Cancer Society, and about 15,500 will die of the disease.

Ovarian cancer is the most fatal of all cancers involving a woman's reproductive tract.  It is very difficult to diagnose, with only 15% being diagnosed at an early stage when it is more easily treated.  Women diagnosed in the early stages have an 89 to 94 percent chance of surviving at least five years.

Here are some links to more information on ovarian cancer:

http://www.healthywomen.org/condition/ovarian-cancer

Ovarian Cancer (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research)

How Is Ovarian Cancer Diagnosed? (American Cancer Society)

Drugs Approved for Ovarian Cancer (National Cancer Institute)

Ovarian Epithelial Cancer (PDQ): Treatment (National Cancer Institute)

Ovarian Germ Cell Tumors (PDQ): Treatment (National Cancer Institute) 

September is Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month

September is Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month.  Ovarian cancer will affect 1 in 72 women at some point during their lifetime (Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results (SEER) Program).  The higher incidence is among older women, but there are many cases of ovarian cancer among younger women.

Ovarian cancer is a very difficult cancer to diagnose since the symptoms are vague and mimic other conditions.  Symptoms may include:

Heavy feeling in pelvis

Pain in lower abdomen

Bleeding from the vagina

Weight gain or loss

Abnormal periods

Unexplained back pain that gets worse

Gas, nausea, vomiting, or loss of appetite

The most common type of ovarian cancer is Epithelial cell cancer (85-90% of cases).  Here are some risk factors for epithelial cell cancer:

Age older than 55 years

Family history of breast cancer, ovarian cancer, colon cancer, or endometrial cancer (cancer of the lining of the uterus)

Personal history of breast cancer

BRCA1 or BRCA2 mutation

Never having had children

Infertility

Endometriosis

In order to diagnose ovarian cancer, you should get a physical examination.  Your doctor might order a transvaginal ultrasound exam and a blood test that will measure the level of CA 125.  If any of these tests look suspicious you will have a biopsy that will test the tissue in your ovaries for cancer.

If you do have ovarian cancer, surgery will be done to discover what stage your cancer is in (how far the cancer has spread from the ovaries, if at all.)  Surgical option include removing the uterus, ovaries and fallopian tubes.  Tests such as colonoscopy, CT scan, and MRI may be done to see how far the cancer has spread.  Surgery is usually followed by chemotherapy as part of the treatment for ovarian cancer.

For more detailed information on Ovarian Cancer, check out these links:

Ovarian Cancer (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) – PDF

How Is Ovarian Cancer Diagnosed? (American Cancer Society)

Drugs Approved for Ovarian Cancer (National Cancer Institute)

Ovarian Epithelial Cancer (PDQ): Treatment (National Cancer Institute)

Treatment Side-Effects (National Ovarian Cancer Coalition)

Ovarian Cancer Research

Since I have been posting occasional information in observance of Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month, I thought I'd do one more post with some information on what's going on with research in ovarian cancer treatment.

Here are some links to information on ovarian cancer research:

Modified Chemotherapy Regimen Effective in Advanced Ovarian Cancer
Women with advanced ovarian cancer lived longer and without their tumors growing after receiving a modified regimen of a standard chemotherapy drug combination, Japanese researchers have reported. In a large phase III clinical trial, the researchers randomly assigned women to receive six cycles of carboplatin and paclitaxel (Taxol) every 3 weeks (standard regimen) or six cycles of carboplatin every 3 weeks and a lower dose of paclitaxel (Taxol) once a week (dose-dense regimen). Women in the dose-dense group had a 29 percent reduction in the risk of progression and a 25 percent reduction in the risk of death after 3 years of follow-up. The results were published online September 18, 2009, in The Lancet.

Ovarian Epithelial Tumors Traced to Fallopian Tubes
Researchers at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston, Mass., have found that the source of disease in many cases of the most aggressive form of ovarian cancer, serous carcinoma, may not be the ovary at all, but rather the fimbria of the fallopian tube. Dr. Keren Levanon reported these findings at the American Association for Cancer Research annual meeting on April 14, 2008.

Ultrasound Expertise Important in the Diagnosis of Ovarian Cancer
Improving the quality of diagnostic ultrasound scans could significantly reduce unnecessary surgeries in women with suspected ovarian cancer who, in fact, have benign disease, according to a study by British researchers.

From the American Cancer Society: What’s new in ovarian cancer research and treatment?

Heed Early Warning Signs of Ovarian Cancer

Since I've been spotlighting ovarian cancer this month, I thought I'd share a little news item I found from the American Cancer Society called Heed Early Warning Signs of Ovarian Cancer. Ovarian cancer is hard to diagnose because many times there are no symptoms or the symptoms, such as bloating and pelvic or abdominal pain, are common to other less serious problems. Sadly, only 20% of ovarian cancers are diagnosed at an early stage when it is easier to treat.

Besides the information from the American Cancer Society, be sure to check out the MedlinePlus health topic on Ovarian Cancer for links to information on all aspects of ovarian cancer.

National Ovarian Cancer Coalition

I thought I'd pass on another link regarding ovarian cancer. If you know someone who is battling ovarian cancer (or lost a battle with the disease) and you want to get more involved with the cause, the National Ovarian Cancer Coalition (http://www.ovarian.org/) has a great web site with some very helpful information. They list news and events around the country. They also have sections for the newly diagnosed, survivors, and caregivers. There is a lot more information there, so make sure you take a look at it.

SEPTEMBER IS OVARIAN CANCER AWARENESS MONTH

Periodically throughout the month of September I will be featuring information on ovarian cancer since it is a very difficult cancer to diagnose.

The following information is just an overview of ovarian cancer. For more complete information, check out the links at the end of this article.

Ovarian cancer usually affects women over the age of 50, although it also affects younger women. It is a very hard cancer to diagnose since there may be no symptoms or the symptoms may be vague and hard to distinguish from less serious health issues.

SYMPTOMS:

The symptoms of ovarian cancer include:

- Heavy feeling in pelvis
- Pain in lower abdomen
- Bleeding from the vagina
- Weight gain or loss
- Abnormal periods
- Unexplained back pain that gets worse
- Gas, nausea, vomiting, or loss of appetite

RISK FACTORS:

Doctors can’t always explain why one women gets ovarian cancer and another doesn’t, but studies have shown there are certain risk factors for ovarian cancer:

- Family history of cancer: Women who have a mother, daughter, or sister with ovarian cancer have an increased risk of the disease. Also, women with a family history of cancer of the breast, uterus, colon, or rectum may also have an increased risk of ovarian cancer.

If several women in a family have ovarian or breast cancer, especially at a young age, this is considered a strong family history. If you have a strong family history of ovarian or breast cancer, you may wish to talk to a genetic counselor. The counselor may suggest genetic testing for you and the women in your family. Genetic tests can sometimes show the presence of specific gene changes that increase the risk of ovarian cancer.
-Personal history of cancer: Women who have had cancer of the breast, uterus, colon, or rectum have a higher risk of ovarian cancer.
- Age over 55: Most women are over age 55 when diagnosed with ovarian cancer.
- Never pregnant: Older women who have never been pregnant have an increased risk of ovarian cancer.
- Menopausal hormone therapy: Some studies have suggested that women who take estrogen by itself (estrogen without progesterone) for 10 or more years may have an increased risk of ovarian cancer.

If you experience any of the symptoms of ovarian cancer, talk to your doctor. Your doctor will talk to you about your medical history and may order one or more of the following tests: a physical exam, pelvic exam, blood tests, ultrasound, or biopsy.

STAGING:
If you are diagnosed with ovarian cancer, your cancer needs to be staged so your doctor knows the best treatment to use. It is important to know if the cancer has spread. Tests that may be ordered include CT scan, chest x-ray, barium enema x-ray, or colonoscopy.

These are the stages of ovarian cancer:

- Stage I: Cancer cells are found in one or both ovaries. Cancer cells may be found on the surface of the ovaries or in fluid collected from the abdomen.
- Stage II: Cancer cells have spread from one or both ovaries to other tissues in the pelvis. Cancer cells are found on the fallopian tubes, the uterus, or other tissues in the pelvis. Cancer cells may be found in fluid collected from the abdomen.
- Stage III: Cancer cells have spread to tissues outside the pelvis or to the regional lymph nodes. Cancer cells may be found on the outside of the liver.
- Stage IV: Cancer cells have spread to tissues outside the abdomen and pelvis. Cancer cells may be found inside the liver, in the lungs, or in other organs.

TREATMENT:

Cancer treatment can affect cancer cells in the pelvis, in the abdomen, or throughout the body:

Local Therapy: Surgery and radiation therapy are local therapies. They remove or destroy ovarian cancer in the pelvis. When ovarian cancer has spread to other parts of the body, local therapy may be used to control the disease in those specific areas.

Intraperitoneal chemotherapy: Chemotherapy can be given directly into the abdomen and pelvis through a thin tube. The drugs destroy or control cancer in the abdomen and pelvis.

Systemic chemotherapy: When chemotherapy is taken by mouth or injected into a vein, the drugs enter the bloodstream and destroy or control cancer throughout the body.

It is important that you discuss all treatment options with your doctor. You may want to get a second opinion and you probably have a lot of questions.

For more detailed descriptions of this information, check out What You Need to Know about Ovarian Cancer from the National Cancer Institute.

What Is Ovarian Cancer? from the American Cancer SocietyOvarian Cancer Interactive Tutorial from the Patient Education Institute

For links to more information on all aspects of ovarian cancer, visit the MedlinePlus Ovarian Cancer health topic