Why can’t we see it coming? That’s the question we ask in this episode, and one part of the answer is that the symptoms are vague - bloating, pelvic pain, back pain, feeling full quickly. But symptom awareness is important, as is the need to take these seriously - something we could all do better with.
Ovarian cancer is a pretty sneaky disease, often showing up when it’s very far advanced. And the fact that it’s not a singular disease was a shock to me when I found out about it.
I had a conversation with my mom’s oncologist, Dr Lana Saciragic, who talked me through the nature of ovarian cancer, and the difficulty with diagnosing. She leaves me with memorable words about how patients process a difficult diagnosis.