Ovarian cancer the focus of awareness effort
By David Dinsmore • ddinsmore@thetowntalk.com • September 15, 2009
While pink ribbons seem to be pop up on cars, billboards and merchandise all year, September is a time to focus on teal, the official color of National Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month.
The Ovarian Cancer National Alliance is partnering with 47 groups around the country to help spread the word about one of the most common forms of cancer overlooked by patients and health-care providers, said Cara Tenenbaum, vice president of policy and external affairs for the alliance.
“They’re doing a whole host of events,” Tenenbaum said.
From walks and runs to “painting the town teal,” volunteers are doing what they can to encourage women to learn more about the most deadly form of all gynecological cancers, said Georgi Morales, the alliance’s director of marketing and communications.
The alliance helps its partner groups to get resources they need to plan an event that spreads ovarian cancer awareness.
As of this time, there are no partner groups in Louisiana, Morales said, but about 50 new cases are discovered each year in the state. Additionally, 15 women in Louisiana die of the disease annually.
The cancer will strike one in 71 women in a lifetime with about 46 percent of those surviving more than five years after diagnosis, according to the American Cancer Society. That survival rate is nearly 43 percent less than patients diagnosed with breast cancer.
The problem often is late diagnosis, Tenenbaum said. Many of the symptoms of ovarian cancer are subtle, and patients and doctors often misread them as being caused by some other malady.
“There’s no lump (as with other cancers),” Tenenbaum said. “If there’s no specialist in the area ” or you can’t get to a doctor ” this can delay a diagnosis, which decreases the chance of survival.”
About 19 percent of ovarian cancer patients catch it in Stage I, which has a 93 percent survival rate, according to information from the Alliance. In comparison, 67 percent of cases are caught in advanced stages often after spreading from the ovaries to other parts of the body.
There is no definite test that can be easily and regularly performed to screen for ovarian cancer, Tenenbaum said, but there are things women can do to guard themselves.
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The best place to start is learning about the symptoms. Some of the most common signs are bloating, pelvic and abdominal pain, difficulty eating or feeling full quickly, urinary symptoms like urgency or frequency, fatigue, indigestion, back pain, pain with intercourse, constipation and menstrual irregularities.
If she is experiencing abnormal and persistent symptoms, it might be time for a woman to consult her doctor about the possibility of ovarian cancer, Tenenbaum said.
After all, 90 percent of women who have the disease did experience symptoms.
National Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month has been recognized by the office of the president and by Congress, Morales said.
Any person or group interested in partnering with the Ovarian Cancer National Alliance may call (202) 331-1332 or check online at www.ovariancancer.org.
The organization works to provide advocacy, education and awareness.
