The Facts About Ovarian Cancer

The American Cancer Society estimates that in 2023, about 19,710 new cases of ovarian cancer will be diagnosed and 13,270 women will die of ovarian cancer in the United States.

  • Ovarian cancer is the deadliest of gynecologic cancers.

  • Mortality rates are slightly higher for African American women than for Caucasian women.​

  • A woman’s lifetime risk of developing ovarian cancer is 1 in 78.

  • Only 15 percent (14.8 percent) of ovarian cancer patients are diagnosed with early stage disease.

Who is Most at Risk

  • Family history of breast, ovarian or colon cancer

  • Genetic mutations like BRCA, Lynch Syndrome

  • Post-menopausal

  • Personal history of cancer or endometriosis

  • started menstruating at an early age (before 12)

  • has not given birth to any children

  • experienced menopause after 50

  • has never taken oral contraceptives

  • Infertility, regardless of whether or not a woman uses fertility drugs, also increases the risk of ovarian cancer

  • Use of hormone replacement therapy

  • Obesity

 

Know the Symptoms

Ovarian cancer does have symptoms, but they are often very subtle and easily mistaken for other, more common problems.  In some rare cases, early stage ovarian cancers may produce symptoms, but in the majority of women these don’t show up until the cancer has advanced (when the growth of the tumor triggers symptoms). Several studies show that ovarian cancer can produce these symptoms:

  • Swollen or bloated abdomen

  • Pelvic or abdominal pain

  • Difficulty eating or feeling full quickly

  • Urinary symptoms (urgency or frequency)

  • Constipation

  • Unusual vaginal bleeding

 

Decrease Your Risk

  • The use of oral contraceptives (birth control pills) decreases the risk of developing ovarian cancer, especially when used for several years. Women who use oral contraceptives for five or more years have about a 50 percent lower risk of developing ovarian cancer than women who have never used oral contraceptives.

  • Pregnancy and Breastfeeding

  • Pregnancy and breastfeeding are linked with a reduced risk of ovarian cancer, likely because women ovulate less frequently when pregnant or breastfeeding. Multiple pregnancies or having first full-term pregnancy before the age of 26 decreases risk.

  • Primary peritoneal cancer, which is microscopically almost identical to ovarian cancer, can still occur, but is infrequent. One recent study suggests that women with BRCA1 mutations gain the most benefit by removing their ovaries before age 35.

  • Having a hysterectomy, or removal of the uterus while leaving the ovaries, may decrease the risk of ovarian cancer by 33 percent, according to the American Cancer Society. Having fallopian tubes tied (tubal ligation) may reduce risk by up to 67 percent, the American Cancer Society says, though researchers aren’t sure why this is the case.

Information courtesy of The Ovarian Cancer Research Alliance https://ocrahope.org/patients/about-ovarian-cancer/risk-factors/