Testing women with any symptoms for high levels of CA125 protein could help more people survive the cancer GPs should routinely offer blood tests for ovarian cancer to women who describe any of the symptoms associated with early stages of the disease, according to NHS guidance for England and Wales. Checking for high levels of a protein called CA125 – a test at present usually done in hospitals – could help more women survive, guideline developers said. Only about a third of the 6,800 women diagnosed each year survive for five years, though chemotherapy and surgery have helped improve survival rates significantly over the past 30 years. Offering blood tests in GP surgeries, followed, if necessary, by scans of the abdomen and pelvis, could mean earlier referral to specialists for diagnosis, said the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (Nice). Fergus Macbeth, director of the centre for clinical practice at Nice, said: "The stage of the disease at diagnosis is the most important factor on predicting survival. While the symptoms are nonspecific, their persistence can be an important indicator of the disease. Our guideline highlights some effective initial investigations that GPs and other healthcare professionals can undertake ... Ovarian cancer affects 20,000 women each year, yet the signs are hard to read Ovarian cancer kills more than any other reproductive cancer but often goes undetected Ovarian cancer charities are working together for the first time during Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month (March 2011) to build awareness of signs and symptoms of ovarian cancer. Ovarian cancer is the fourth commonest cause of cancer death amongst UK women with nearly 4,500 deaths per year yet four in five women with ovarian cancer are diagnosed after the disease has spread from the ovary and survival rates for ovarian cancer have barely improved for 30 years. Despite these alarming statistics awareness of the signs and symptoms of ovarian cancer is low amongst both women and GPs... Cancer prevention experts have long been frustrated by the lack of a meaningful way to screen women for ovarian cancer. It is a relatively rare disease that often progresses with few symptoms until it is too late for potentially curative treatments, and elevated values of the most commonly used biomarker used in screening, CA125, are also related to other disorders.
Key Words: ovarian cancer symptoms
References:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2011/apr/27/ovarian-cancer-blood-tests
http://feeds.cbsnews.com/~r/CBSNewsHealth/~3/WB0Xoes3_eg/8301-504763_162-20048240-10391704.html
http://feeds.cbsnews.com/~r/CBSNewsHealth/~3/xc-a4yy2JD8/8301-504763_162-20035279-10391704.html
http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/mnt/healthnews/~3/0cT9faVJhvs/3PQ9
http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/~3/g8kuUi_d4E0/101213075125.htm
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