What is the prognosis for someone diagnosed with ovarian cancer?
Dr. Jeakle: Prognosis is related mostly to the stage at diagnosis. Cure rates are as high as 90 percent with surgery alone when the cancer is confined to the ovary. This is considered stage 1 disease. However, the five-year survival drops to about 35-40 percent for stage 3 disease. Unfortunately, stage 3 is when 70 percent of ovarian cancer is diagnosed, because symptoms can be nonexistent and vague in the early stages. What is needed is a good screening test which would allow for early detection in the low-risk population, but unfortunately this is not yet available. There are clinical trials under way looking at different screening modalities and hopefully something will become available soon, because it would have a dramatic impact of survival. However, because of a lack of an effective screening test, early identification of symptomatic women has become a goal of the current approach to this disease. PNR: What are the symptoms of ovarian cancer? Dr. Jeakle: Symptoms include bloatin
