Things You Can Do to Prevent Ovarian Cancer
Preventive measures for ovarian cancer
Although the cause of ovarian cancer is not known with
certainty, health experts have found various factors that can increase cancer
risk. That way, avoiding, limiting, or doing things contrary to risk factors,
can be an approach to preventing ovarian cancer.
This is very important to apply, especially to people who
are at risk. For example, have gone through menopause or have a family member
with a similar disease or colon cancer and breast cancer.
Here are a variety of ovarian cancer prevention measures you
can take, including:
1. Use birth control pills
Birth control pills are one way to prevent ovarian cancer in
women at risk or who have the BRCA gene mutation in their bodies. The BRCA gene
is passed down from parents that can increase a person's risk of ovarian
cancer.
Women who took birth control pills for 5 years had a 50%
lower risk of developing ovarian cancer than women who never took birth control
pills.
The mechanism of the birth control pill in reducing the risk
of cancer is due to a decrease in the number of ovulations women experience in
their lifetime. This condition can reduce high levels of certain hormones in
the body that trigger cells around the ovaries.
Although proven to prevent ovarian cancer, taking birth
control pills can also increase the risk of breast cancer and cervical cancer.
That's why you should consult a doctor first before using birth control pills.
Your doctor will help you weigh the benefits and side
effects of using these birth control pills.
2. Breastfeeding
The next step to prevent ovarian cancer that you can
consider is breastfeeding. According to a 2020 study from the journal JAMA
Oncology, women who breastfeed can lower their risk of epithelial ovarian
cancer by 24 per cent. The risk reduction will be more significant if the
feeding time is also longer.
Epithelial tumours are cancers that occur in the cells on the
outer surface of the ovaries. This type most often affects women; nearly 75% of
cases of ovarian cancer are epithelial tumours.
3. Childbirth
Women who repeatedly miscarried (incomplete pregnancy) or
did not give birth at all, it turns out to have a greater risk of ovarian
cancer than women who gave birth. Based on these findings, the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) states that childbirth is a preventive
measure for ovarian cancer.
However, more in-depth research has also found that the risk
of ovarian cancer may increase when a woman experiences her first pregnancy
after the age of 35. This is your consideration in planning when it is safe to
have a baby.
4. Consider gynaecological surgery
The following ways to prevent ovarian cancer include undergoing
gynaecological surgery (related to the reproductive organs), such as a
hysterectomy. Ovarian cancer prevention measures may need to be carried out in
high-risk women but still in the doctor's consideration regarding the magnitude
of the benefits or side effects.
Hysterectomy is a surgical procedure to remove the uterus in
women. For women who have a family history of ovarian cancer or breast cancer,
a hysterectomy with bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy (removal of the uterus,
ovaries, and fallopian tubes) may help lower the risk.
Some doctors also recommend that the ovaries and uterus be
removed after a woman goes through menopause or nears menopause to reduce the
risk of ovarian cancer.
5. Check your health regularly
Family cancer syndrome is a risk factor for ovarian cancer.
If you do have this risk, you need to undergo regular health checks. During
this test, you will undergo genetic counselling, a thorough personal health
check-up, and/or your family may also need it.
Doing regular health checks helps you detect ovarian cancer early if it occurs at any time. Knowing ovarian cancer early is a 94% chance for a patient to live more than 5 years after the cancer diagnosis is made.
6. Avoid things that increase the risk of cancer
The cause of ovarian cancer is not known with certainty, but there is a possibility similar to the cause of cancer in general, namely DNA mutations in cells. These cell mutations can be triggered by various carcinogenic things, such as smoking and drinking alcohol.
