Ovarian cancer symptoms are often mistaken for another milder condition by both women and doctors alike. They are so vague that they can often lead you to think that you may have a condition in the reproductive system, but that it is not as serious as cancer.
Cancer is something that everyone has been trying to avoid. Currently, healthy living has taken a front seat in today's society. People are so health conscious that they do away with food that they think is unhealthy. Not only are they trying to avoid cancer, but all other forms of diseases as well. However, we all know that no matter how healthy you are, you will get sick one way or another. The next best thing you can do is early detection. With early detection, you might be able to stop the disease early in its tracks and this could mean a lot when it comes to your survival. This is especially true with cancer.
The sad thing about cancer though, is that it is very cunning. You feel fine one day. And the next day you discover you are already in Stage 4. Do not be disheartened though. There are actually signs and symptoms that you can watch out for. You may have noticed them before, but dismissed them as something that you shouldn't be concerned about. Well this time, you know better.
In ovarian cancer, you should be looking out for pelvic or abdominal pain. Now, women suffer from abdominal pain regularly, especially during their menstrual cycle. This is called dysmenorrhea. However, dysmenorrhea would only last for a short while - 3 to 4 days max. In ovarian cancer, abdominal pain may last for two to three weeks.
Painless bleeding is another great sign of cancer. Women with ovarian cancer might bleed a lot. They will bleed more than normal, and the thing that separates them from menstrual bleeding si that bleeding in ovarian cancer lasts for weeks at a time.
Changes in your menstrual cycles could be attributed to a lot of factors. Stress, for one thing, would greatly affect you menstrual cycle. However, if you observe that you have been suffering from continuous abnormalities in your menstrual cycle, like amenorrhea, mittelschmerz, excessive bleeding and more, you should immediately consult with your doctor.
Other symptom associated with ovarian cancer would be feeling of fullness after just a small intake of food or water, bloating, changes in your bowel movement, constant back pain that cannot be explained, decrease or lack in appetite, and pelvic heaviness.
As you can observe from the previous paragraph, the symptoms mentioned could also be related to other reproductive system conditions. They key here is to get consultation as early as possible. Most people are too scared to go to the doctor and find out that they are already suffering from a serious disease. If you ask me, it is better to know than to be ignorant. If you are aware of your condition, you could get treatment and increase the chances of your survival, right?
