Ovarian Cancer Early Detection
When is early detection of ovarian cancer necessary?
Some types of
cancer, such as breast cancer, colon
cancer, and cervical cancer, are recommended from 21 years and above. However,
there are no rules that specify when women should have screening tests for
early detection of ovarian cancer.
In fact, no
screening test is recommended for ovarian cancer for women who have no symptoms
and are not at high risk of developing this cancer. Although there are no age
recommendations for early ovarian cancer detection tests, you can underline the
following two important things.
When you are at risk with ovarian cancer
The cause of ovarian cancer is not known for sure. However, health
experts found sharing things that can increase the risk. Namely, women who have
gone through menopause, obesity, have had or are having breast cancer, and have
a family with a history of breast cancer and colon cancer.
In women with a
history of ovarian cancer, oncologists will offer early detection tests such as
TVUS and CA-125. Until now, scientists are still conducting research to look at
the possibility of other tests that can help detect ovarian cancer more
effectively and have the potential to lower the risk of ovarian cancer death.
When you experience symptoms of ovarian cancer
Ovarian cancer
often causes no symptoms. However, some also begin to feel the presence of
symptoms that are generally almost the same as other health problems, such as
flatulence, constipation, and abdominal pain.
When other health
problems are mild enough, they will improve in a quick time. However, in cancer,
these symptoms continue to appear and do not improve until 3 weeks. If you
experience these symptoms followed by common cancer symptoms such as weight
loss, fever, and extreme body fatigue, make these signs and symptoms a warning.
You may need to
visit your GP first. If it is suspected as ovarian cancer, the doctor will
refer to a cancer specialist. After that, you will be asked to take a screening
test for the early detection of ovarian cancer.
How to detect ovarian cancer
CA-125 blood test
CA-125 is a
protein produced by more than 90% of epithelial tumor-type ovarian
cancers. This type of ovarian cancer indicates the occurrence of cancer in the
cells that line the outer surface of the ovary. This is the most common type of
ovarian cancer in women.
However, high
levels of CA-125 are not always caused by ovarian cancer alone. Some other
diseases can also increase levels of this protein in the blood, such as pelvic
inflammatory disease or endometriosis.
In some cases, it
was also found that ovarian cancer patients were detected to have non-high
levels of CA-125. Your doctor may recommend this early ovarian cancer detection
test again to confirm the results or consider further ovarian cancer tests.
Ultrasonografi transvaginal
If your doctor still
needs follow-up tests to establish a diagnosis of ovarian cancer, transvaginal
ultrasound is usually an option. This test is often abbreviated as the TUVS
test. A person at high risk of ovarian cancer may be recommended to have
regular screening tests.
Based on
research, the TUVS test is quite promising because it can help diagnose cancer
in the early stages (stage one).
This scan test
can give an idea of the condition of the ovaries and see the possibility of
abnormal cells and tumors in the ovaries. This test also helps doctors to distinguish ovarian cysts from ovarian
cancer cysts.
Biopsy
For a more
accurate way, a biopsy procedure may be performed. Detecting ovarian cancer is
carried out by taking a sample of tumors in the ovaries through surgery. Then,
this sample will be taken to a laboratory and viewed through a microscope.
What if the early detection test results of ovarian cancer are positive?
After that, tests will be done to establish the diagnosis so that the doctor can determine which stage of ovarian cancer the patient has. Then, your doctor will recommend appropriate ovarian cancer treatment.
