Last week Australia observed Teal Ribbon Day held to raise awareness of ovarian cancer and its impact on the community. Ovarian cancer has no screening test yet like a mammogram or ‘pap’ smear that women can have regularly to make sure they do not have other female cancers. It is important, therefore, for each woman to know the symptoms of ovarian cancer so they can monitor their own body for any indications that all is not well.<\/p>\n
One in 70 Australian women will develop ovarian cancer by the age of 85. According to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, more than 1500 women are diagnosed each year, and for more than half it will simply be too late to treat so they will die from it. Once the disease has spread it cannot be treated successfully. However, if the disease is found in the early stages most of the women will achieve full recovery. In statistical terms 90% will still be alive and well after five years if the tumour was found in time to treat. So it is crucial to have that awareness that can get you to the doctor at the earliest possible time.<\/p>\n
Symptoms include increased abdominal size or bloating, unexplained pain in the pelvic or abdominal areas, feeling full, difficulty eating, change in bowel habits, and increased need to urinate. Also tell your doctor if you have had any unexplained weight gain or loss, unexplained vaginal bleeding, back pain, indigestion or nausea or excessive fatigue.<\/p>\n
Part of the problem is that these symptoms are vague, and every woman feels like she has experienced them once in awhile due to stomach upset, cramps, a vaginal infection, or other causes. But the rule of thumb is when the symptoms have persisted for 2 or more weeks, and you have them every day during that time, you need to see your doctor.<\/p>\n
Diagnosis may take some time, as other causes need to be ruled out. Your doctor will require a blood test, physical examination of the pelvis and an ultra sound. They may also request routine chest and abdominal x-rays and an X-ray of the bowel. Treatment for ovarian cancer usually includes surgery and chemotherapy. Radiotherapy is sometimes used, as well.<\/p>\n
Women at increased risk have been found to be Caucasian, have a western standard of living, have had few or no pregnancies, have never used oral contraceptives, or may have a family history of ovary, bowel, breast or lining of the uterus cancers. Other risks include being overweight, having a high fat diet, and having had multiple exposures to fertility drugs. If you are at any increased risk be sure to tell your doctor.<\/p>\n
Australian research continues into ovarian cancer, and one day it is hope there will be an effective screening test. Until that day all women must be aware and vigilant. For more information and resources, click here<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Last week Australia observed Teal Ribbon Day held to raise awareness of ovarian cancer and its impact on the community. Ovarian cancer has no screening test yet like a mammogram or ‘pap’ smear that women can have regularly to make sure they do not have other female cancers. It is important, therefore, for each woman […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4129,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-390701","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/390701","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4129"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=390701"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/390701\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=390701"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=390701"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=390701"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}