I remember that I had passed menopause and yet I was bleeding. I went to my family doctor. She did an ultrasound and said everything was fine. However, I kept bleeding. So I went to a gynecologist. After thorough testing, she discovered I had ovarian cancer. For me, I am a survivor. I had surgery and I had stage 1 ovarian cancer. But I cannot say enough about taking symptoms seriously even if you don’t know what the symptoms mean. You could have bloating, pelvic pain, etc. Whenever something isn’t right it’s best to have it checked out immediately with a specialist. My mistake was going to a family doctor instead of a gynecologist right away. But I knew I wasn’t OK and I acted fast.
I’ve read that the five-year survival rate (the percentage of women who survive for five years or more after diagnosis) for early-stage ovarian cancer is about 80% to 90%. The five-year survival rate for advanced-stage ovarian cancer varies from about 28% to 40%.
That’s a huge difference. While symptoms of ovarian cancer can be subtle, I would urge any woman to see a specialist immediately. The odds are so much better if it is caught in the early stages.