“Ovarian cancer should not be categorized as a single disease, but rather as a constellation of different cancers involving the ovary, yet questions remain on how and where various ovarian cancers arise, says a new congressionally mandated report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. The report presents research opportunities that if addressed could have the greatest impact on reducing the number of women who are diagnosed with or die from ovarian cancers. Each year in the United States, more than 21,000 women are diagnosed with ovarian cancer, and more than 14,000 women die from the disease. It is the fifth leading cause of cancer deaths among women, with a five-year survival rate of less than 46 percent. The five-year survival rate has increased over the years, though; between 1975 and 1977, only 36 percent of women diagnosed with ovarian cancer lived five years or more. However, five-year survival rates decreased for black women, from 42 percent between 1975 and 1977 to 36 percent between 2005 and 2007. Often called a silent killer, ovarian cancer has no distinct symptoms in the early stages of the disease, and an effective screening test is unavailable. Roughly two-thirds of women are diagnosed at an advanced stage when the cancer has already spread beyond the ovary, of which less than 30 percent survive past five years…”
