September

     September is my birthday month! Yay! I'm going to be 50! Yay! A friend asked me how I felt about being 50. Now, I know that many people are upset over being half-a-century old, mainly because 50 is, well,  old. I know that nobody wants to be old. That is nobody except me, I want to be old. I have always wanted to be that kooky, funky, yet hip, old lady. I am starting early because my time frame has shifted. I always thought I would live to be 88 and planned my life as such. However, as you know, things have changed a little bit. I get to be kooky, funky, yet hip, now. I remember a time when I didn't know if I would live this long. I did! I am 50! Let the kooky, funky, yet hip begin....

     But before all that begins, I feel the need to share this....

     September is Ovarian Cancer Awareness month. The women who live with ovarian cancer, along with their family and friends, are very aware. The general public, not so much.  I will share a little story that exemplifies this.  I was once stopped by a stranger in a parking lot.  She asked if I had cancer. I'm pretty sure she could tell because of my rockin' hairdo. She said something I don't remember that made it obvious she was talking about breast cancer. I corrected her and explained that I had ovarian cancer. She exhaled a long sigh of relief and exclaimed "Thank god it's curable!". Bless her heart. It's not curable. She didn't know that, yet. I had to educate her. And I will educate you as well.

    Ovarian cancer is relatively rare. About 1 in 70 will develop ovarian cancer. In comparison, about 1 in 8 women will develop breast cancer. Despite it's rarity, ovarian cancer is deadly. Of those diagnosed, about 30% will be alive 5 years later. In comparison, of those diagnosed with breast cancer, about 85-90% will survive those 5 years. Ovarian cancer has a high fatality rate probably because the majority of cases are not found until the disease has spread throughout the abdomen. This is Stage 3 cancer and most of us, about 80%, are diagnosed at this stage or later, Stage 4. There is no Stage 5. The answer seems simple, find the cancer earlier.

   Ovarian cancer has long been called the "silent killer", presumably because it has no symptoms until its too late. There is no current screening test. I am here to tell you that there are symptoms and signs. Ovarian cancer is not silent, but it whispers, so you have to pay attention. Pay attention to these things: 

       

          1. Bloating

          2. Pelvic or abdominal pain

          3. Difficulty eating, feeling full quickly

          4. Urinary changes, urgency and/or pressure in the absence of infection. 

          5. Fatigue

These symptoms could happen to any of us on a bad day. The key is  frequency. If you have these symptoms almost daily for more than 14 days each month, please see your doctor. Ask your doctor to tell you why you do not have ovarian cancer. Ask for a pelvic/rectal exam, a blood test called CA-125, and a trans vaginal ultrasound if warranted.

     Be your own advocate.  This disease can be curable if found early. Most of us living with ovarian cancer would tell you that our own conditions worsened as we slogged our way through the medical system looking for a diagnosis. Most of us did not push for tests or answers. We did not know that we were dealing with ovarian cancer. We did not know the symptoms. This is the real reason why ovarian cancer is a silent killer, nobody talks about it. I'm talking about it. I'm telling you my experiences so that you don't have to repeat those same experiences. I did not know. Now you know.  Use your knowledge. Tell a sister, tell a friend, tell a daughter, tell a mother, tell every woman! 

   

    For further information, please visit ovarian.org