Introduction to Ovarian Cancer

Description

Ovarian malignant growth is a growth of cancerous cells that occurs in the ovaries of female reproductive system. Ovarian cancer is a cancer that forms within the ovary. It results in the growth of abnormal cells that have the ability to invade or spread to other parts of the body. When this process begins, there may be no or only indeterminate symptoms. Symptoms become more noticeable as the cancerous cells increases. The common symptoms include bloating, pelvic pain, abdominal swelling and loss of appetite among others. Early signs and symptoms of ovarian cancer may be absent or very less. Sometimes symptoms can be misdiagnosed as irritable bowel syndrome. In earlier stages of ovarian cancer signs and symptoms are absent. Symptoms can vary based upon their subtype. Ovarian cancer borderline tumours are also known as low malignant potential (LMP) ovarian tumours, which does not cause an increase in CA125 levels and the cancerous tumours can’t be detected with an ultra sound. The typical symptoms of an LMP tumour can include abdominal cramps or pelvic pain. The common risk factors of ovarian cancer are related to the amount of time spent for ovulation. Thus, absence of children is a major risk factor for ovarian cancer, because ovulation is suppressed via pregnancy. During ovulation, cells are constantly stimulated and undergo replication to divide even though the ovulatory cycles continue. Therefore, people who have not conceived earlier are at twice the risk of ovarian cancer than those who have conceived for single time. The risk of causing ovarian cancer is less for women who have irregular menstrual cycles, breast feeding, take oral contraceptives, and conceived in younger age too might increase the risk of ovarian cancer.

Hormone deficiency may also leads to ovarian cancer in some cases. The use of fertility medication may leads to low malignant potential ovarian tumour formation. Fertility drugs may be connected to higher risk of borderline tumours. The patients who had not treated properly are at the high risk of epithelial ovarian cancer; however, those who have treated properly for infertility and subsequently give birth will be at lower risk. This may be due to killing of cancerous cells during pregnancy, but the reason behind this is unclear. Hormonal conditions such as polycystic ovary syndrome and endometriosis are related to ovarian cancer, but the common link between them is not yet known. Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) likely increases the chance of getting ovarian cancer. Postmenopausal hormone replacement therapy with combination of estrogen and progesterone may increase simultaneous risk if used for more than 5 years, but the chances of getting risk returns to normal after finishing of therapy. This effect can be achieved by giving birth to children, having combination of oral contraceptives, and breast feeding; all of them comes under protective factors. Long term breast feeding may also leads to larger decrease in the risk of ovarian cancer. For every birth it helps to decrease the risk of ovarian cancer, and this effect is seen up to five births. Combination of oral contraceptives reduces the risk of ovarian cancer by up to 50%, and the duration of action of combined oral contraceptives can last up to 25–30 years. Regular use of aspirin may increase the risk of ovarian cancer.