  |
|
|
RETURN TO:
NexProfiler™ Tools Main
|
|
|
|
Signs and Symptoms Ovarian cancer usually doesn't cause any signs or symptoms until late in the disease when it has already spread to surrounding organs. Symptoms are often vague, persistent, may increase over time and be similar to those found with many other conditions. These subtle, nonspecific symptoms are frequently ignored or treated with medicine to relieve discomfort and not attributed to a cancerous process. The ovaries are located within the abdominal cavity where they are difficult to feel. These cancers may grow to a size of about 10 to 12 centimeters (4-5 inches) before spreading to adjacent organs and producing symptoms. In ovarian cancer, a woman's abdomen may become swollen from a build-up of fluid, called ascites. Abdominal distention, pressure and increase in abdominal girth are the most common physical signs of ovarian cancer.
Detection While the Pap smear has been extremely effective in finding early cases of cervical cancer, there is no simple screening test for detecting ovarian cancer. That's why it is so important for women who become sexually active or over the age of 18 (whichever occurs first) to have an annual routine pelvic examination. During this examination, the doctor can feel if a woman's uterus and ovaries are normal in size and shape and can also detect any nodules or masses that may be in the pelvis or on the pelvic floor. Feeling a pelvic or abdominal mass on either side of the uterus during a physical examination should suggest suspicion of ovarian cancer. Women with ovarian cancer may have abdominal swelling caused by ascites. A mass that has spread to the omentum (the fatty lining covering the bowel) can be felt in the upper abdomen. Some patients with advanced ovarian cancer appear malnourished. If the tumor has spread to lymph glands in the groin or the neck, the lymph nodes may become enlarged and can be felt by the doctor during the physical examination. If the results of the physical examination suggest ovarian cancer, a series of diagnostic imaging tests are then performed to gather more information and help determine the diagnosis. The final diagnosis, however, must be confirmed by surgical exploration and pathologic examination of tissue biopsies, except in cases of Stage IV disease where surgical exploration may not be performed. Besides an annual pelvic exam and a complete physical exam, a special type of pelvic ultrasound (transvaginal ultrasound) may be used to screen women who have a strong family history of ovarian cancer. Research suggests that these women hold high risk for developing epithelial ovarian carcinomas (EOC) cancer of the cells lining the ovarian surfaces. Transvaginal ultrasound uses a small instrument, called a vaginal probe or tube, which emits sound waves (ultrasound).This diagnostic tool is an effective, safe noninvasive method to evaluate the size, shape, configuration, and consistency of the ovaries and to determine if they are cystic (fluid filled cysts or nodules), solid, or both. The probe is inserted into the patient's vagina. The sound waves painlessly bounce off the internal organs and their reflections are seen on a special video screen, creating a "snapshot" of the pelvis. Most doctors prefer transvaginal ultrasound, because the probe can be placed close to the ovaries and produce better image quality. Although transvaginal ultrasound is very helpful, it cannot determine which abnormal conditions are cancerous and which are not. To help solve this question, transvaginal color flow Doppler may be used. Transvaginal color flow Doppler technology helps to identify normal blood vessels from those newly formed to feed a cancerous tumor by measuring the speed and resistance of blood flow through the vessels. These measurements are recorded and then displayed as graphs. Although not perfect, the accuracy of transvaginal color flow Doppler in differentiating cancerous ovarian tumors from benign cysts is sufficient to help the doctor decide if surgery is needed. CAT (computed axial tomography or CT) and/or MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) may also be performed to confirm the presence of a pelvic mass. The size, internal architecture, and blood flow of the mass are used to make an educated guess as to whether the pelvic mass is benign or cancerous. All these tests can provide a high index of suspicion of ovarian cancer; but it is important to remember that diagnostic imaging studies are not conclusive and cannot, by themselves, make the diagnosis of ovarian cancer. Surgery with tissue biopsies from the tumor itself is required to confirm a diagnosis of ovarian cancer (except in cases of Stage IV disease where surgical exploration may not be performed.) A blood test, called CA-125, is usually done if ovarian cancer is suspected. About 80 percent of epithelial ovarian cancers produce a protein called CA-125 that can be measured in the blood. The normal level of CA-125 is less than 35 units per millimeter (µ/ml) in blood. But this is not a very specific test, as some benign conditions also produce CA-125 while about 50 percent of early stage ovarian cancers do not produce it at all. Additionally, a normal CA-125 in patients with an ovarian mass does not rule out ovarian cancer. In general, the higher the level of CA-125, the greater the chance of having ovarian cancer, especially for postmenopausal women. This test is primarily used to follow the progress of ovarian cancer in women after they have been diagnosed. CA-125 is usually measured during the diagnostic work-up and evaluation before treatment, and then during and after treatment. For patients whose elevated CA-125 normalizes with effective treatment, more than one subsequent elevated CA-125 is highly indicative of active disease, but this does not mandate immediate therapy.  This content is reviewed regularly. Last Updated 6/6/2007
|
|
||||||||||||||||||||
HOME | GLOSSARY | CONTACT US cancerfacts.com, the cancerfacts.com logo, NexProfiler, NexCura, Heart Profiler, the NexProfiler logo, the NexCura logo, the Heart Profiler logo and the Powered by NexCura logo are either trademarks or registered trademarks of NexCura, Inc. Copyright © NexCura, Inc. All rights reserved. U.S. Patent No. 6,581,038 & Patents Pending. Other foreign patents may apply. This information is for educational purposes only. |