Ovarian cancer is cancer that starts in the ovaries. The ovaries are the female reproductive organs that produce eggs.
Alternative Names
Cancer - ovaries
Causes, incidence, and risk factors
A woman has a 1 in 67 chance of developing ovarian cancer. Ovarian cancer is the fifth most common cancer among women, and it causes more deaths than any other type of female reproductive cancer.
The cause is unknown.
The risk for developing ovarian cancer appears to be affected by several factors. The more children a woman has and the earlier in life she gives birth, the lower her risk of ovarian cancer. Certain genes (BRCA1 and BRCA2) are responsible for a small number of ovarian cancer cases. Women with a personal history of breast cancer or a family history of breast or ovarian cancer have an increased risk for ovarian cancer.
The use of fertility drugs may be associated with an increased chance of developing ovarian cancer, although this is a subject of ongoing debate.
The links between ovarian cancer and talc use, asbestos exposure, a high-fat diet, and childhood mumps infection are controversial and have not been definitively proven.
Older women are at highest risk. About two-thirds of the deaths from ovarian cancer occur in women age 55 and older. About 25% of ovarian cancer deaths occur in women between 35 and 54 years of age.
Ovarian cancer symptoms are often vague and non-specific, so women and doctors often blame the symptoms on other, more common conditions.
Ovarian cysts (4 images)
Average Rating:
(Doctor-Reviewed information)
An ovarian cyst is a sac filled with fluid or a semisolid material that develops on or within an ovary. Reviewer: Audra Robertson, MD, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.Date: 06/20/2006
Radiation therapy (1 image)(Doctor-Reviewed information)
Radiation therapy uses high powered x-rays or radioactive seeds to kill cancer cells. Reviewer: Richard J. LoCicero, MD, Medical Oncology, The Longstreet Cancer Center, Gainesville, GA. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.Date: 09/25/2006
Chemotherapy (1 image)(Doctor-Reviewed information)
Chemotherapy is the use of drugs to kill bacteria, viruses, fungi, and cancer cells. Most commonly, the term is used to refer to cancer-killing drugs. This article focuses on cancer chemotherapy. Reviewer: Rita Nanda, M.D., Department of Medicine, Section of Hematology/Oncology, University of Chicago Medical Center, Chicago, IL. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.Date: 10/31/2006
Cancer
Average Rating:
(Doctor-Reviewed information)
Cancer is the uncontrolled growth of abnormal cells in the body. Cancerous cells are also called malignant cells. Reviewer: Rita Nanda, M.D., Department of Medicine, Section of Hematology/Oncology, University of Chicago Medical Center, Chicago, IL. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.Date: 09/11/2006
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