It starts with flatulence and nausea. Ovarian cancer gives confusing symptoms for a long time

At first, it makes itself felt very innocently – with flatulence, belching, a feeling of fullness or diarrhea. Ascites appear later. The disease is incurable for most patients.

1. Ovarian cancer is of particular concern to doctors and patients, even though it is not one of the most common cancers in women
2. In 1990, 2 people contracted ovarian cancer. 404 Polish women, 10 years later already 3 157, currently it is over 4 thousand. cases per year
3. In most cases it is an incurable disease
4. May 8 is the World Ovarian Cancer Awareness Day.
5. More information can be found on the Onet homepage.

Why does ovarian cancer have such a high mortality rate?

The high mortality rate from ovarian cancer is due to its insidious development. This cancer does not give any obvious symptoms, and it is not possible to perform any screening tests, as is the case with, for example, cervical cancer or breast cancer. It doesn’t hurt for a long time. Cancer cells grow in the ovaries, in the tissues surrounding them, or in the fallopian tubes. Sometimes the neoplastic process begins in the lining of the abdominal cavity, i.e. in the peritoneum. Cancer cells can easily detach from the original tumor and move around the abdomen. They attack, inter alia, the intestines, liver and stomach. Symptoms appear only in the advanced stage of the disease, but they are often confused with gastric ailments. This includes flatulence, diarrhea, a feeling of fullness, belching or finally ascites.

Therefore, the diagnosis falls like a blow. Then the fight against cancer begins, counted down with the rhythm of relapses and subsequent therapies. Even 20 years ago, most of the patients did not survive two years.

– Currently, fifty or sixty months is not anything extraordinary, and there are people who live ten, fifteen, twenty years – argues in the book of prof. Radosław the Wise. – Although it is still a very difficult cancer to treat, 15-20 percent of women survive ten years without any signs of disease. This is mainly due to the increasing number of drugs that extend life very effectively.

Treatment of ovarian cancer. Recent years have brought enormous progress

Experts often point out that in the last five years, tremendous progress has been made in the treatment of ovarian cancer. The current weapon in the fight against the disease, i.e. surgery and chemotherapy, has been supplemented by the introduction of modern molecularly targeted drugs – PARP inhibitors, which inhibit the multiplication of cancer cells and significantly extend the time between disease recurrences. Unfortunately, not all sick Polish women can count on access to these drugs.

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The standard treatment for ovarian cancer is surgery and chemotherapy, which do not always bring permanent results. Most patients experience a relapse within a short period of time. The latest generation PARP inhibitors are a chance to extend the period of progression. In Poland, one of these drugs is reimbursed under drug programs financed by the Ministry of Health, but only for patients with mutations in the BRCA1 and / or BRCA2 genes and only after prior treatment with standard chemotherapeutic agents. This treatment allows this group of patients to quadruple the progression-free survival time compared to placebo. The remaining patients, i.e. the vast majority, do not have access to the most modern therapies.

Genetic mutations, mainly within the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes, are one of the risk factors for the development of ovarian and breast cancer. About 1 percent are found in carriers of the BRCA40 gene mutation. the risk of developing ovarian cancer and 50-80 percent. risk of developing breast cancer in the course of life. Among patients who developed ovarian cancer, these mutations occur in 15–24%. sick. Each patient qualified for the study may be tested for the presence of a mutation. Qualification for the examination is made by the general practitioner, who conducts a family interview with relatives of 50st-XNUMXrd degree. The presence of cancer in the family before the age of XNUMX, or the diagnosis of the mother or grandmother, is particularly worrying. The test result allows to classify a healthy woman to the risk group, and the sick people can receive optimal, targeted therapy thanks to it.

It is estimated that in Poland there are approx. 100 thousand. carriers of the BRCA1 mutation. Meanwhile, in 2011, over 6 were performed. tests for the presence of this mutation, newer data are missing. Therefore, Polish women are not sufficiently genetically tested. At the same time, access to the latest therapies depends on the results of tests for the presence of mutations. As a result, effective treatment with PARP inhibitors is available in Poland only for some patients, despite clinical trials showing that the therapy allows for more than two times the progression-free time in all patients compared to placebo. Therefore, in many European countries, all patients with ovarian cancer are treated with PARP inhibitors, regardless of the mutation of the BRCA genes.

Even with terminal cancer of the ovary is possible to live with

The heroines of the book «Like a Butterfly. Disenchant the myths. Doctors and patients about living with ovarian cancer »prove that strength of spirit and appropriate treatment allow you to live despite an incurable disease. What’s more – they also allow you to be active. One of the heroes of the book, Barbara Górska, is also the president of the Blue Butterfly Association – We used to think for a long time with the girls close to me, struggling with the same disease, to professionally support others and, referring to their own experiences, to help them go through it all. (…) Preventing them from wandering, so that they know who to talk to, where to seek help, what to pay attention to. She didn’t know herself at first, she learned everything by trial and error. Today, the Association has 600 clients all over Poland, and its partner is the Polish Society of Oncological Gynecology. The association organizes stationary workshops entitled «Butterflies in my stomach. Something for the body and spirit », takes action in oncology wards, conducts classes with beauticians, make-up artists, learns how to tie turbans, connects and supports women suffering from ovarian cancer.

The stories described in the book present the lives of the sick. On the one hand, there is the treatment of ovarian cancer, on the other, celebration of everyday life and the joy of every day, the closeness of my husband, the presence of children and grandchildren, autumn outside the window, dog walks, and trips to the mountains. Patients live the best they can, despite relapses (further attacks of the disease), the need for treatment and the uncertainty that continues with them. They are inspired by hope for the next good years of life.

Unfortunately, ovarian cancer remains incurable, although it is increasingly becoming a chronic disease. Fuller access to modern therapies for all patients may accelerate the improvement of survival statistics, which means more women who are active despite the disease: our mothers, grandmothers, aunts and daughters. «Like a butterfly. Disenchant the myths Doctors and patients about living with ovarian cancer »is a book that brings great hope to ovarian cancer patients and their families.

Press release prepared by the Journalists for Health Association as part of the series of expert debates «Live with ovarian cancer. Like a butterfly. True stories », under the patronage of the Polish Society of Oncological Gynecology and the Blue Butterfly Association.