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Early Diagnosis of Ovarian Cancer
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Contrary to what you might think, early diagnosis of ovarian cancer is possible
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By Phyllis McIntosh
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REMEDY Winter 2005
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The reason a diagnosis of ovarian cancer is often more dire than, say, a diagnosis of breast cancer is that symptoms are noticed only when the disease has progressed to an advanced stage. But a new study has found that many women have significant symptoms six months before they are diagnosed.
Researchers at the University of California at Davis compared data on 1,985 women with ovarian cancer, 6,000 women with localized breast cancer, and nearly 11,000 women who were cancer-free. They found that abdominal swelling and pain were significantly more common in women with ovarian cancer six months before diagnosis than among women in the control groups.
Diagnosis of ovarian cancer can get delayed because doctors may be more likely to order abdominal scans or gastrointestinal tests for women with such symptoms than to check the ovaries, researchers note. They add that women with persistent un- explained abdominal symptoms should receive pelvic imaging and a blood test for ovarian cancer.
Americans get far more heart-protecting antioxidants from coffee than from any other source, researchers told a recent meeting of the American Chemical Society. When University of Scranton scientists analyzed the antioxidant content of more than 100 foods and looked at data on consumption of those foods, they found that coffee contributed the bulk of antioxidants in a typical diet. Other common sources include black tea, bananas, dry beans and corn.
One to two cups of coffee a day, either caffeinated or decaf, provide a beneficial level of antioxidants, according to chemist Joe Vinson, Ph.D. For an even bigger boost, try eating a few dates with your morning java: They have the greatest concentration of antioxidants per serving of all the foods studied.
In millions of adults, the virus that caused chicken pox in childhood reemerges decades later to cause a painful nerve and skin disease called shingles. But adults who harbor the virus may soon have access to a vaccine.
The Department of Veterans Affairs, National Institutes of Health and Merck have tested a shingles vaccine on 38,500 people older than 60. The five-and-a-half-year study found that the vaccine prevented shingles in half of those vaccinated and significantly reduced its severity in about two-thirds of those who still got the disease. The FDA has not approved the vaccine yet.
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