1 in 5 women have no idea bloating is a symptom – here we reveal ALL the ovarian cancer warning signs
ALMOST half of women with deadly ovarian cancer see their GP three times before they are diagnosed.
New research shows 41 per cent have their symptoms missed by doctors who repeatedly send them home.
Thousands only get referred to a specialist after three or more GP visits over many months.
Campaigners last night warned delays were putting lives at risk from one of the most common female tumours.
Despite the recent decline in deaths due to more women taking the contraceptive pill, more than 7,000 women a year are still diagnosed with ovarian cancer and over 4,000 die – one in six within two months of diagnosis.
Symptoms can be vague and the cancer is often hard to detect.
The only sign many women get is a bloated stomach.
A poll of more than 1,300 women by the charity Target Ovarian Cancer found some may be dying due to late diagnosis.
It also revealed only one in five knew bloating was a cancer warning sign.
And only a quarter are able to get access to drug trials that could provide them with life-saving treatments.
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Charity chief executive Annwen Jones said: “Women with ovarian cancer are being failed at diagnosis, as well as in access to trials and effective drugs. They deserve better than this.”
The charity also found two thirds of nurses have no time to explain the symptoms of recurrent ovarian cancer to women.
It called for more cancer nurses and research to develop new drugs.
What is ovarian cancer?
The ovaries are a key part of a fertile woman's reproductive system, which produce an egg each month.
They also produce female sex hormones, oestrogen and progesterone - which control the menstrual cycle.
As ladies age and approach menopause, the ovaries make less and less of these hormones.
Fertile women develop cysts in the ovary every month as an egg develops - and these usually disappear within a few months.
These fluid filled sacks can become cancerous, but this is rare.
Meanwhile recent research found that a natural compound found in onions could help stop the spread of ovarian cancer.
What are the signs and symptoms to watch out for?
In the earliest stages of the disease most women do not show any signs or symptoms.
If they do, they tend to experience:
- pain in the lower abdomen or side
- feeling bloated, or full in the tummy
As the cancer grows, and spreads outside the ovary, the disease can cause other symptoms, including:
- irregular periods or vaginal bleeding after menopause
- lower tummy pain
- back pain
- passing urine more often than usual
- constipation
- pain during sex
- a swollen abdomen
- feeling of fullness or loss of appetite
By the time ovarian cancer has spread to other parts of the body, it may cause these symptoms:
- loss of appetite or feeling of fullness
- feeling or being sick
- constipation
- tiredness
- shortness of breath
- noticeable swelling of the abdomen
Are you at risk?
Around 7,300 women are diagnosed with ovarian cancer in the UK every year - making it the fifth most common cancer in women behind breast, lung, bowel and womb cancer.
Though experts do not know exactly what causes ovarian cancer, the risk of developing the disease increases as you age.
Most women diagnosed with the disease have already gone through the menopause.
Another risk factor is your DNA, with one in 10 ovarian cancers thought to be triggered by an inherited faulty gene.
Faulty genes that increase the risk of both ovarian and breast cancer is the so-called Angelina Jolie gene - BRCA1 and BRCA2.
Other things that experts believe heighten a woman's risk include being infertile, having endometriosis, using hormone replacement therapy and being overweight or very tall.
THE TIPPING POINT
A NHS push for early cancer testing has left services on brink of collapse, a charity warns.
Cancer Research UK said hospitals are at “tipping point” and are struggling to deal with demand.
It means growing numbers of sick Brits are facing lethal delays in treatment.
Since 2010/11, there has been 17 per cent rise in patients waiting more than six weeks for results.
The charity found a 60 per cent rise in referrals for urgent exams in the past five years – and warned staff numbers were woefully inadequate.
Tests include biopsies and blood tests.
Charity chiefs want more pathologists – who study tissue for signs of cancer - trained and employed.
CRUK pathology expert Prof Manuel Salto-Tellez said: “We need to act now before this situation gets worse.
“It’s vital patients are diagnosed at an early stage.”