Recognizing Symptoms of Ovarian Cancer

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For many years, the common belief was that ovarian cancer was a disease that came without warning and had no symptoms. The main reason for this belief is that women and their doctors were not recognizing the symptoms. As a result, most women who developed this disease did not find out until it had progressed to the advanced stages.

This form of cancer develops in a woman's ovaries. This part of the body is very small, about the size of a pea. The ovaries are found on each side of a woman's uterus. The ovaries are involved in the production and release of eggs. The eggs make their way into the fallopian tubes. Progesterone and estrogen, two female hormones are produced in the ovaries. Women who have high levels of estrogen and progesterone are at an increased risk for ovarian cancer.

Not all tumors that form in the ovaries are cancerous. A woman who has benign tumors in her ovaries does not have to worry about them spreading. However, these tumors stimulate the production of estrogen and that's what causes cancer. Tumors that are malignant can spread to other parts of the body. A woman can have tumors in one or both ovaries.

Early detection is very important and dramatically increases a woman's chances for survival. The problem is that the early symptoms are hard to detect because they often resemble normal feminine conditions such as PMS.

One way to distinguish ovarian cancer from other conditions is to see how long the discomfort lasts. With cancer, the symptoms do not fade or go away. Instead, they worsen over time as the disease progresses. Other conditions will go away in a matter of days.

Women who experience problems with their digestive system should see a doctor. Disorders affecting the bladder and other conditions such as constipation, fatigue, and lower back pains could be symptoms. It's also important for women to know the risk factors for this disease. A woman's risk increases with age.

It most often occurs among women during their post menopausal years. Women who undergo hormone replacement therapy are also at an increased risk.

A woman's weight is also a factor. Women who are obese are 80 percent more likely to develop this disease. Certain medications such as danazol can also put a woman at risk. Danazol is a treatment for endometriosis.