Expert, Personal Cancer Care
Ovarian cancer is cancer that develops in the ovaries. The ovaries are small organs, about the size of an almond, in the female reproductive system. They produce and store eggs, and they produce the hormones estrogen and progesterone.
If you have ovarian cancer, or if your provider suspects that you do, you need advanced care from a team of cancer experts. That’s what you can expect at St. Luke’s Center for Cancer Care. Our center is accredited by the Commission on Cancer for our care quality and patient outcomes. We follow the same treatment protocols as large academic medical centers, but we offer them in one convenient location, which lets our doctors collaborate more easily as part of your treatment. Our providers work together on patients’ care plans in regularly meeting tumor boards to ensure we’re providing the best possible care. We take part in a range of clinical trials to help patients access treatments not available elsewhere. And we work to ensure your appointments are in sync with each other, so you spend less time waiting for your care and more time with your care team.
Types of Ovarian Cancer We Treat
Ovarian cancer can form in three places within the ovaries. The type of cancer helps us determine the right treatment plan for you. The three main types of ovarian cancer are:
- Epithelial ovarian cancer: This type accounts for 90% to 95% of ovarian cancer cases. This cancer starts in epithelial tissue, which lines the surface of the ovaries and fallopian tubes (which carry eggs from the ovaries to the uterus).
- Stromal ovarian cancer: This type can develop in the connective tissue of the ovaries that produces hormones.
- Germ cell ovarian cancer: This type can develop in the cells of the ovaries that produce eggs.
How We Diagnose Ovarian Cancer
If your provider suspects that you have ovarian cancer, you likely will need one or more of the following tests:
- Pelvic exam: Your provider will insert gloved fingers into the vagina and press on your abdomen (belly) with the other hand to feel your pelvic organs. This can let your provider feel if there is a mass that could be a tumor.
- Imaging tests: Ultrasound, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and/or computed tomography (CT) scans can let us see the size and shape of your ovaries.
- Blood tests: We’ll test your blood for a type of protein called CA-125. This can be a sign of some types of cancer.
- Genetic testing: If you are at increased risk for ovarian cancer Ovarian Cancer Risk Factors, your provider may recommend that you have genetic testing. We can test your blood for mutations (gene changes) that increase your risk for ovarian cancer.
- Surgery: Your doctor may need to remove one of your ovaries and have it tested for signs of cancer before we can determine whether you have ovarian cancer.
If we confirm that you have ovarian cancer, we’ll assign it a stage. This lets you and your care team better understand how severe the cancer is and whether it has spread to other areas of the body. The four stages of ovarian cancer are:
- Stage 1: In this stage, the cancer is only in one or both ovaries or the fallopian tubes.
- Stage 2: In this stage, the cancer has spread to the uterus and potentially other tissues in the pelvis.
- Stage 3: In this stage, the cancer has spread to the abdomen or within lymph nodes.
- Stage 4: In this stage, the cancer has spread to the inside of distant organs, such as the lungs, liver or spleen.
Our Ovarian Cancer Treatment Options
Surgery
Surgery is the main treatment for ovarian cancer. You and your doctor will decide which surgical approach is right for you. The procedures we offer include:
- Removal of one or both of the ovaries and fallopian tubes
- Removal of both ovaries and the uterus
- Cytoreduction (also called debulking, surgery to remove as much cancerous tissue as possible) if the cancer has spread elsewhere
Other Ovarian Cancer Treatments
Depending on the type and stage of your ovarian cancer, your doctor may recommend one or more of the following treatment options as part of your care plan:
- Chemotherapy: We may use chemotherapy before or after surgery.
- Targeted therapy: This treatment lets us interfere with the molecules produced within the body that cancer cells need to survive and grow.
- Immunotherapy: We can help your body’s immune system better detect and destroy cancerous cells.
- Radiation therapy: Though we don’t often use radiation treatment as part of ovarian cancer care, your doctor may recommend it to kill any cancerous cells left over after other treatments.
Symptoms of Ovarian Cancer
You may not notice any symptoms in early-stage ovarian cancer. This often makes it challenging to diagnose ovarian cancer early in its development. Some of the symptoms of ovarian cancer include:
- Changes in bowel movements, including constipation or diarrhea
- Fatigue (feeling tired)
- Feeling full quicker than normal when eating
- Having to urinate more often than normal
- Pain in the pelvis, abdomen or back
- Unexplained weight loss
Ovarian Cancer Risk Factors
There are several factors linked to an increased risk of ovarian cancer. These include:
- Age: Most women with ovarian cancer are older than 60
- Early start or late end to menstruation (periods)
- Endometriosis (a condition in which tissue similar to the endometrium, the tissue that lines the uterus, grows outside your uterus)
- Family history of ovarian cancer
- Having taken hormone replacement therapy after menopause
- History of Lynch syndrome (a genetic condition that can increase your risk for several types of cancer)
- Inherited mutations in certain genes
- Never having been pregnant
- Obesity