A recent International Journal of Gynecologic Cancer study evaluates the efficacy of symptom-triggered testing in detecting early-stage ovarian cancer. Study: Symptom-triggered testing detects early stage and low volume resectable advanced stage ovarian cancer . Image Credit: Ground Picture / Shutterstock.
com Improving ovarian cancer patient outcomes In the United Kingdom, ovarian cancer is the sixth most common cause of cancer-related deaths. Most women diagnosed with early-stage ovarian cancer, which is defined by the International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) as stage I or II, have better five-year survival rates as compared to women diagnosed with advanced stage ovarian cancer. Clinical trials conducted in the U.
K. and United States have demonstrated that screening for ovarian cancer can improve stage diagnosis but does not appear to significantly affect mortality rates. One key challenge that prevents the early diagnosis of ovarian cancer includes vague symptoms associated with this disease and its low prevalence rate.
Clinicians have identified a symptom triad that includes increased abdominal size and bloating, early satiety, and pain linked with ovarian cancer. Based on these symptoms, a symptom index was designed for national guidelines to increase awareness among clinicians. Symptom-triggered testing for ovarian cancer has been endorsed by several U.
K. and U.S.
-based cancer organizations such as the American Cancer Society, Society of Gynecologic O.