March is Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month in the UK giving us the perfect opportunity to focus some attention on a disease that gets very little attention. In this week’s blog we would like to share the key things that you need to know about ovarian cancer.

Ovarian Cancer is the 5^th most common cancer in the UK with 7,000 new cases diagnosed each year.  Unfortunately it is the biggest gynaecological killer with just under 4,300 women dying from ovarian cancer each year. Survival rates are pretty poor with only 43% of women surviving  beyond 5 years of their diagnosis compared to 85% of breast cancer patients.  There are many reasons why survival rates are so much lower than breast cancer.  It is a complex cancer which is extremely hard to diagnosis because the symptoms are vague and non-specific with over 50% of patients in the UK being diagnosed at a late stage making treatment challenging.

We can improve these bleak statistics by empowering women with the information that they need to take quick action. Increased awareness leads to early diagnosis and early diagnosis saves lives; over 90% of women diagnosed early will survive beyond 5 years compared to only 4-19% diagnosed at a late stage.

Being aware of the symptoms and acting quickly if you think you have them is thus very important.

There are four main symptoms of ovarian cancer and they are
· Persistent pelvic/tummy pain
· Persistent bloating
· Difficulty eating
· Needing to urinate more frequently

If you have any of these symptoms for more than 12 days per month, then visit your GP. It’s a good idea to make a diary of your symptoms in the days and weeks leading up to your appointment so you can have a really good discussion with your GP. The charity Ovarian Cancer Action provides an easy to use symptoms diary. Download this, complete it and take it with you to your appointment.

It’s also important to be aware of what increases your risk of developing ovarian cancer.  The two main factors that increase a person’s risk of developing ovarian cancer are: age and family history.

Age: As we get older our risk of developing ovarian cancer increases. The majority of ovarian cancers (80%) occur in women who are aged 50 and over. If you are in this age group it’s important that you are aware of the symptoms and visit your doctor promptly if you have any concerns.

Family History/Genetics:  10-20% of ovarian cancers are hereditary. If you have two or more family members who have been affected by breast and/or ovarian cancer then you might be at a higher risk of developing ovarian cancer.

If you have a family history of ovarian cancer, visit your doctor to discuss your risk and for more information about hereditary cancer please read our recent blog post.