Our purpose is to educate younger people in Yorkshire on the symptoms of ovarian cancer because we know that earlier detection prolongs lives. Most patients with ovarian cancer receive their diagnosis too late, at stage three or four.
Those aged between 15 and 39 with ovarian cancer have the highest survival rate, but often this age group believe they won’t be affected, and that ovarian cancer is an older person’s disease.
There is no current screening tool for ovarian cancer, that’s why it is so important that people with ovaries understand their bodies and clue themselves up on the symptoms.
– Persistently bloated stomach
– Difficulty eating/ feeling full quickly
– Unexplained weight loss
– Pelvic or abdominal pain
— Family history of ovarian and other cancers
– Pain during sex
– Abnormal bleeding
– Feeling tired and sluggish 24/7
– Need to wee urgently/ more than usual
– Changes in bowel habits
Other signs to be aware of include nausea, pressure in your pelvis and/or back and flatulence.
If you have been experiencing symptoms on a frequent basis (12 times or more per month) we encourage you to see a GP.
When you’re more at risk:
– If you have gone through the Menopause. More than 5 in 10 cases of ovarian cancer are in those over 65 years.
– If you have a family history of ovarian cancer, as you may carry the mutated high risk BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene.
– If you have had breast cancer in the past, as you may carry the mutated high risk BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene.
– If you started your period at a young age (12 or younger)
– If you are of Eastern European Jewish descent (as you are ten times more likely to carry the BRCA gene)
Anyone approaching a GP with these symptoms may be sent for an ultrasound, as well as a CA125 blood test, which tests specifically for ovarian cancer. Doctors will particularly look to carry out tests for ovarian cancer in those of 50 or over who have experienced symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), within the last 12 months, because IBS rarely presents for the first time in women of this age.
More information on ovarian cancer can be found here:
Cancer research UK: cancerresearchuk.org
NHS ovarian cancer overview: nhs.uk/conditions/ovarian-cancer
