PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Tennis legend Chris Evert recently shared that she has ovarian cancer, putting the condition at the forefront of people’s minds.
Ovarian cancer is a diagnosis that often comes as a surprise to patients. The symptoms are very vague — things like fatigue, bloating and feelings of being extremely full shortly after eating.
Ovarian cancer usually attacks women when they are older, and if a woman has never been pregnant, the risk goes up. But the most dramatic association is a family history of the disease.
In the case of Evert, her sister, Jeanne, died of ovarian cancer. Two of the genes that increase the risk are BRCA1 and BRCA2, which also are associated with breast cancer.
If you have a close relative, like a mother, aunt or sister, with breast or ovarian cancer, you can be tested to see if you are at risk as well.
KYW Newsradio’s Medical Reports are sponsored by Independence Blue Cross.