Ovarian cancer
hideOvarian cancer is a cancerous growth arising from different parts of the ovary.
The most common form of ovarian cancer (≥80%) arises from the outer lining (epithelium) of the ovary. Other forms arise from the egg cells (germ cell tumor).
In 2004, 25,580 new cases were diagnosed and 16,090 women died of ovarian cancer. The risk increases with age and decreases with pregnancy. Lifetime risk is about 1.6%, but women with affected first-degree relatives have a 5% risk. Women with a mutated BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene have a 25% risk. Ovarian cancer is the fifth leading cause of death from cancer in women and the leading cause of death from gynecological cancer.
10-year relative survival ranges from 84.1% in stage IA to 10.4% in stage IIIC.
Ovarian cancer causes non-specific symptoms, which contribute to diagnostic delay, resulting in a late stage and a poor prognosis. Most women with ovarian cancer report one or more symptoms such as abdominal pain or discomfort, an abdominal mass, bloating, back pain, urinary urgency, constipation, tiredness and a range of other non-specific symptoms, as well as more specific symptoms such as pelvic pain, abnormal vaginal bleeding or involuntary weight loss. There can be a build-up of fluid in the abdominal cavity (this is called ascites).
An abnormal physical examination (including a pelvic examination), a blood test (for CA-125, more specifically) or medical imaging studies can provide evidence leading to an ovarian cancer diagnosis. The diagnosis can be confirmed with a surgical procedure (open or keyhole surgery) to inspect the abdominal cavity, take biopsies (tissue samples for microscopic analysis) and look for cancer cells in the abdominal fluid. Treatment usually involves chemotherapy and surgery, and sometimes radiotherapy.
In most cases, the cause of ovarian cancer remains unknown. Older women, and in those who have a first or second degree relative with the disease, have an increased risk. Hereditary forms of ovarian cancer can be caused by mutations in specific genes (most notably BRCA1 and BRCA2, but also in genes for hereditary nonpolyposis colorectal cancer). Infertile women and those with a condition called endometriosis, those who have never been pregnant and those who use postmenopausal estrogen replacement therapy are at increased risk. Use of oral contraceptive pills is a protective factor. The risk is also lower in women who have had their uterine tubes blocked surgically (tubal ligation).
For more information about Ovarian cancer, read the full article at
Wikipedia.
This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.
News tagged with ovarian cancer
FDA approved leukemia drugs shows promise in ovarian cancer cells
Nov 10, 2009 |
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The drug Sprycel, approved for use by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in patients with chronic myeloid leukemia, significantly inhibited the growth and invasiveness of ovarian cancer cells and also promoted their death, ...
Nanoparticles for gene therapy improve
Nanotechnology / Bio & Medicine
Nov 06, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- About five years ago, Professor Janet Sawicki at the Lankenau Institute in Pennsylvania read an article about nanoparticles developed by MIT's Robert Langer for gene therapy, the insertion ...
Metals could forge new cancer drug
Oct 19, 2009 |
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Drugs made using unusual metals could form an effective treatment against colon and ovarian cancer, including cancerous cells that have developed immunity to other drugs, according to research at the University ...
Breast cancer patients with high risk gene diagnosed six years earlier than generation before
Oct 09, 2009 |
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Women with a deleterious gene mutation are diagnosed with breast cancer six years earlier than relatives of the previous generation who also had the disease and/or ovarian cancer, according to new research from The University ...
Cancer predisposition from genetic variation shows strong gender bias
Sep 21, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Cancer predisposition resulting from the presence of a specific gene variant shows a strong gender bias, researchers at the University of Cincinnati (UC) have demonstrated.
The Medical Minute: Preservation of fertility -- gynecologic cancer
Sep 03, 2009 |
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In recent years, several new innovations have been employed in the treatment for women with gynecologic cancer in an effort to preserve fertility. These innovations consist of conservative ovarian staging, embryo/oocyte cryopreservation, ...
Scientists find genetic marker associated with ovarian cancer risk
Sep 01, 2009 |
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A new genetic marker associated with ovarian cancer risk was recently discovered by an international research group, led by scientists from the Cancer Research Genetic Epidemiology Unit in the United Kingdom. Drs. Marc Goodman, ...
New treatment in sight for ovarian cancer
Aug 31, 2009 |
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In the future, women with metastatic ovarian cancer could be treated with a radioactive substance that can seek and destroy tumour cells. An initial study in patients conducted jointly by the Sahlgrenska Academy at the University ...
More than half of women with ovarian cancer face delay in diagnosis
Aug 26, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Many women with ovarian cancer can go undiagnosed for months because their symptoms are not always being investigated promptly, warn researchers at the University of Bristol in a study published ...
Cornell makes cancer vaccine for clinical use
Aug 20, 2009 |
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The Bioproduction Facility at Cornell University has produced the first batch of NY-ESO-1 recombinant protein—a cancer vaccine—that will be used in clinical trials for patients facing either ovarian cancer or melanoma. The ...
Research Team Designing Holographic Imaging System for Ovarian Cancer
Aug 11, 2009 |
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Two University of Arizona researchers have formed a research team to design, build and evaluate two versions of an ovarian cancer medical imaging and screening instrument that will use holographic components ...
Young early stage ovarian cancer patients can preserve fertility
Aug 10, 2009 |
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A new study finds that young women with early-stage ovarian cancer can preserve future fertility by keeping at least one ovary or the uterus without increasing the risk of dying from the disease. The study is published in ...
Women often opt to surgically remove their breasts, ovaries to reduce cancer risk
Aug 06, 2009 |
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Many women at high risk for breast or ovarian cancer are choosing to undergo surgery as a precautionary measure to decrease their cancer risk, according to a report in Cancer Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention, a jour ...
Nanoparticle-delivered 'suicide' genes slowed ovarian tumor growth (w/ Video)
Jul 30, 2009 |
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Nanoparticle delivery of diphtheria toxin-encoding DNA selectively expressed in ovarian cancer cells reduced the burden of ovarian tumors in mice, and researchers expect this therapy could be tested in humans within 18 to ...
EphA2-targeted therapy delivers chemo directly to ovarian cancer cells
Jul 29, 2009 |
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With a novel therapeutic delivery system, a research team led by scientists at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center has successfully targeted a protein that is over-expressed in ovarian cancer cells. Using ...
