Ovarian Cancer
Hi, all welcome back to my blog I hope everyone is staying safe and had a great weekend, as you can tell from the title this is a different type of post iv already brought you alone on my cancer journey, part of my journey was research, I’m the type of person who finds reassurance in knowledge as scary as it was to be diagnosed with a tumor as soon as I found out I started to research I wanted to find out everything about this disease because it gave me some control in a way, not sure if that makes sense it just made me feel better too know what the possible outcomes could be so I could mentally prepare myself.
I knew nothing about ovarian cancer or any cancer for that matter, I hear the word and I associated with a fatal disease that you think will never happen to you. I found out the hard way it can happen to anybody but knowing what to look out for and being aware of changes in your body can save your life.
I want to break down this type of cancer as simple as I can so everyone can understand because it can be a silent killer if it’s undetected but if your diagnosed early you have a great chance for recovery, I feel very lucky I was diagnosed early it’s the reason I’m still here and healthy.
- Over 441 cases are diagnosed in Ireland annually
- its the 6th most common cancer in women
- Symptoms can be vague and non-specific in the early stages
ovaries are made up of millions of cells, some of these make hormones, some surround the eggs as they develop and others make up the outside layer of the ovary.
Cancer develops when any of these cells start to multiply out of control forming a tumor.
Common warning Symptoms:
- swollen abdominal ( stomach feels hard/ painful)
- abdominal bloating or discomfort
- extreme tiredness
- back pain, abdominal pain
If any of these symptoms persist for three or more weeks you should consult your GP
Unfortunately, because our ovaries are hidden within our abdominal ovarian cancer often goes undiagnosed till it spreads and symptoms become clear.
I was very fortunate that the size of my tumor made it possible to be diagnosed early at stage one which is very uncommon but gave me the best chance of recovery.
It’s only in the advanced stages when cancer spreads or metastasized that symptoms become clear.
How is it diagnosed:
There are a couple of ways your doctor can diagnose you
- an ultrasound can show if your ovaries are the right size and if there are any cysts on the ovaries
- A ct scan and or MRI are types of x-rays that give a more details picture of your ovaries and will show any abnormalities
Treatments:
first, your doctor assesses what stage your cancer is and that determines your treatment plan, surgery, and or chemotherapy.
I really hope you found this post informative and helpful I really think it’s important to have all the information, I know its a scary topic but if you know what to look for it could save your life, I would also encourage people to get regular checkups, check-in with you gp I know life can take over and your health takes a back seat but that fun life can be cut short if you don’t look after yourself.
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