Originally published September 19 2005
Women lack ovarian cancer knowledge
by Mike Adams, the Health Ranger, NaturalNews Editor
In a recent survey of Canadian women, 96 percent of women could not identify common symptoms of ovarian cancer, such as abdominal swelling, pain or changes in urinary frequency, and more than one in 10 women had never even heard of the disease, which some health professionals say is due to the fact that women rarely discuss the potentially deadly cancer with their doctors.
Ovarian cancer and its symptoms remain a mystery to a huge number of Canadian women, with 96 per cent polled in a recent survey unable to identify common signs of the disease and more one in ten saying they've never even heard of the illness.
"I'm not surprised," Elisabeth Ross, executive director of the National Ovarian Cancer Association, told globeandmail.com on Wednesday.
"We're really trying to get women to think about ovarian cancer, get it on the radar screen and find out about it, so they will know if they're at risk," she said.
In total, 96 per cent of those polled were unable to identify a combination of common symptoms of the illness like abdominal pain, swelling of the abdomen, changes in urinary frequency, weight loss or gain and nausea.
"I think again the reason is when you go into the doctor, you don't talk about it," Ms.
"You don't think about having cancer in your ovaries."
The survey also found that one in three women incorrectly believed that a Pap test screens for ovarian cancer.
The findings also suggested women over 50 were significantly less likely to be aware of ovarian cancer than younger women.
This year marks the first time the survey has been done.
Ross could not say whether awareness levels in Canada had improved in recent years.
She said women with symptoms of the disease or those with a family history of ovarian cancer should talk to their family doctor about the illness.
Dr. Barbara Vanderhyden, who specializes in ovarian-cancer research at the University of Ottawa, said early awareness of the illness is "absolutely crucial" because of the importance of early detection in fighting the disease.
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