Bad news for women

[Linda]

I am very sorry for the loss of your sister. I agree that cancer is an insidious disease. It's hit my family very hard. My daddy's cancer was also Stage 1 at discovery. After surgery to remove the tumor he took chemo and radiation. He still lived less than a year. My Aunt was dignosed at Stage 4 and outlasted daddy by several years. So I know cancer doesn't follow rules.
I have yet to make sense of it all, but help me understand something if you can. You mentioned you can still get ovarian cancer even if your ovaries are removed. How is this?

removing the ovaries does not always guarantee women will not develop ovarian cancer. (Rarely, the cells that cause ovarian cancer can be present in the body even after the ovaries are removed)

My doctor said that just removing the ovaries may not be enough (in rare cases). She recommends a complete hysterectomy which is also removal of the uterus and fallopian tubes.

So sorry about your Dad and Aunt.

 

[Linda]

Great discussion. Just a quick comment on genetic screening, it is an area of debate in the sense that if this becomes part of your medical record, you could be discriminated against by all manner of insurance companies...some legislative measures have been taken to fight this, but just be careful to consider this when genetic screening is considered. Also, genetic screening is not a panacea, it has to be taken in context with the entire health history of a patient and probably more often than not shouldn't be performed (in my opinion).

I think that the most important thing any of us can do is to be proactive about our health. Do your research. I agree that genetic testing is not a panacea and that the entire health history of a patient (which should also include health history of relatives) should be taken into consideration before considering genetic testing. I believe that in the case of my niece - it saved her life and for that I am so grateful.

You are also correct about possible discrimination from insurance companies. Please look at the Youtube link below to see what is being done to try and fight this in the legislature.

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z7RbIUmbGsg"]YouTube - The Genetic Information Non-Discrimination Act[/ame]

 

[Linda]

Amazingly, my mother in law is a 15 year ovarian cancer survivor.

 

[Linda]

Thanks Margarita for the link to your niece's organization!

You're welcome. I am very proud of her for using a bad situation to do good.

 

[Beach Runner]

This is very sad. I worry for my mom, for my wife, for my daughter...

But honestly, ladies:
Do you really think that because men cannot get ovarian cancer that this is why science has not yet given us a test?

I shared your posting with a friend who is a doctor. She said your point is ridiculous and told me I shouldn't waste my time trying to convince you otherwise. So I guess I won't...

:roll:

Actually, my doctor agreed with my point (regardling sexual discrimination in medical research). He gave examples of how much medical research is done on male subjects only, and in the recent past it has been found that women's symptoms might be different than men's, such as with heart disease. I shared this conversation today with several research Ph.D.'s in biochemistry and biology, some of whom are males, and they all agreed with me.

In any case, so sorry about your family problems, Cheering, Margarita, and greenroomsurfer. But the good news is that Johnrudy's MIL is a survivor!