Day 3 of Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month: How deadly is the Big O?

If Ovarian Cancer is caught at an early stage, it is very treatable. Key words: caught early. My mom was lucky enough to catch her cancer at a treatable level...even though it was Stage 3 and had already spread - there was no tumor metastasized yet.

On the OCNA web site there are oodles of figures about how deadly Ovarian Cancer is, and here are the most interesting tidbits:

• It is the deadliest of all gynecologic cancers and the fifth leading cause of cancer deaths among American women. 
• A woman’s lifetime risk of developing invasive ovarian cancer is 1 in 72. 
• More than 22,000 American women will be diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 2013. 
• About 14,000 women will die from ovarian cancer in the United States in 2013.

There is no detection system for Ovarian Cancer, just your own awareness of your bodily functions. Pay attention every day, and keep a journal if you have to. It helps to keep track and then look back and see if something is off. It is better off in the long run if you catch it early. 

Day 2 of Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month: The Big O basics

As women, sometimes we just put up with our body because our body doesn't act normal all the time. You know what type of foods give you gas, you know that at certain times of the month you bloat, etc., etc. After awhile you just take those little variances as "just the way your body works" and ignore the functions.

That is a deadly frame of mind, because that is how Ovarian Cancer sneaks up on females: the subtle body functions that we take for granted. Whether it is every day or once a month, you shouldn't ignore your body.

Remember ovarian cancer’s subtle symptoms.

• Bloating; pelvic and abdominal pain; difficulty eating or feeling full quickly; and urinary symptoms (urgency or frequency). Many people do not know that ovarian cancer causes these symptoms in the majority of women who develop the disease.
• Additional symptoms may include fatigue, indigestion, back pain, pain with intercourse, constipation and menstrual irregularities. 
• Factors that increase risk include: increasing age; personal or family history of ovarian, breast or colorectal cancer; and never having been pregnant or given birth to a child. 
• About 10 to 15 percent of women diagnosed with ovarian cancer have a hereditary tendency to develop the disease.
• And there are many women out there WHO DO NOT HAVE A HISTORY OF OVARIAN CANCER in their family, yet develop Ovarian Cancer. So again, know the symptoms.