Wouldn’t it be great to know if you were ill before you felt sick? Well, that’s exactly what a health screening does. Health screenings provide a way for your doctor to detect disease, disorders and conditions before you ever have any signs or symptoms. Health screenings, like mammograms and Pap tests, have saved the lives of many women by detecting breast and cervical cancer in their earliest stages.
Mammograms and Pap tests are so important to your health that we dedicate the months of October and January to raising awareness. What about ovarian cancer though? Is there a screening test for ovarian cancer that you aren’t aware of? Read on to discover five things you must know about ovarian cancer screenings.
1. Ovarian cancer screenings do not exist
Ovarian cancer ranks fifth in cancer deaths among women. According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), there is no simple or reliable way to screen for ovarian cancer. Currently, there is not a screening test that would identify ovarian cancer in a woman before there were signs or symptoms. The American Cancer Society reports that only about 20 percent of ovarian cancers are found in the early stages of the disease.
2. Your annual pelvic exam won’t detect ovarian cancer early
A pelvic exam is usually done along with your Pap test at your annual physical. During a pelvic exam, your doctor examines the vulva and the internal reproductive organs like the vagina, cervix, uterus, Fallopian tubes and the ovaries. Although a pelvic exam can be useful, it is extremely difficult to feel small tumors in the early stages of ovarian cancer. The Pap test can detect cervical cancer in its early stages, but it does not provide your doctor with any information regarding ovarian cancer.
3. Knowing your body is the best ovarian cancer screening
I’m sure you’ve heard that getting to know your own body plays a key role in having good health. Well, in the case of ovarian cancer, knowing your own body may be the only…