Bloating or Ovarian Cancer? Six Common Symptoms of an Uncommon Disease

The risk of having any form of cancer is scary but ovarian cancer is scarier than most. A few things make it frightening. It's hard to detect early and unlike breast, cervical, colon and some other types of cancers we don't have any screening tests for it. And it is one of the deadlier cancer types.

But in June of 2007, the Gynecologic Cancer Foundation, the Society of Gynecologic Oncologists, National Ovarian Cancer Coalition (NOCC), and the American Cancer Society agreed on six symptoms that can help detect ovarian cancer earlier. If women and their health providers both know about them and pay attention to them.

By knowing these symptoms and remembering that ovarian cancer is most likely not the cause of them, you will be able to keep things in perspective avoid unnecessary worry.

6 Symptoms of Ovarian Cancer:

Bloating
Pelvic pain
Abdominal pain
Increased abdominal size
Poor appetite or feeling full quickly
Urinary frequency or urgency
4 Tips for Avoiding Unnecessary Worry:

All women have these symptoms from time to time and they are only rarely caused by ovarian cancer - usually they are caused by uncomplicated and passing conditions.
Listen to your body; wait until you have had one or more of these symptoms every day for several weeks and they are a change from how you've felt in the past before you decide it's time to worry.
Knowing what to look for gives you a reliable warning system. Now you know when to contact a health professional for further examination and testing.
Watchful waiting for a few weeks will not change your long term prognosis or treatment success - so try not to panic. If you are concerned you might have ovarian cancer, then talk to your health professional about your concerns.
Tests Used to Diagnose Ovarian Cancer

A pelvic exam that includes both a bimanual vaginal and rectal examination.
Abdominal, pelvic and/or transvaginal ultrasound. Transvaginal is a more sensitive test and is being studied as a possible screening test for high risk women. In a transvaginal ultrasound a probe a little larger than a tampon is inserted in the vagina. No probe is inserted in an abdominal or pelvic ultrasound.
CA-125 is a blood test. It stands for "cancer antigen 125". It measures a protein normally made by certain cells in the body including the fallopian tubes, uterus, cervix, ovaries, and the lining of the chest and abdominal cavities. The normal value for CA 125 is less than 35 kU /ml. A CA-125 is not recommended as a screening test for ovarian cancer. There has been a lot of controversy and misunderstanding about this test. See this page on the Women's Cancer Network website for more about that.
CT scans or MRIs.
Chest x-rays
Barium enema x-rays
Colonoscopy
PET scans
Exploratory surgery and biopsies
Here are some additional links to more information about ovarian cancer and the 6 Symptoms:

American Cancer Society and the 6 Symptoms

This is a research study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association by the doctors who came up with the 6 Symptoms.

National Library of Medicine

Gilda Radner Familial Ovarian Cancer Registry

* This information is offered for educational purposes only and is not intended to diagnose, prescribe or treat. For that please seek direct care from a health professional.