WOMEN with ovarian cancer are being failed, according to a study by Target Ovarian Cancer.
The study found that there is an inherent lack of progress in diagnosis, awareness, treatment and support and that more needs to be done.
Mo Easton, 77, waited over a year for the correct diagnosis and is now living with her fourth recurrence.
“Seven years ago, I had symptoms of ovarian cancer, but I did not realise.
“I did not know at the time that bloating, abdominal pain, feeling full and needing to wee more urgently were all signs.
“I had 11 visits to the GP before I found out I had ovarian cancer, and it was advanced.”
The study echoed the problems Mo experienced.
One in five women know that bloating is a symptom, a quarter of women have over three appointments before being referred for tests and nearly a third wait over three months from first visiting their GP for a diagnosis, the study found.
Nationally, one-third of women are diagnosed with the early stage of ovarian cancer.
Women and GPs have expressed concern that the progress in combatting ovarian cancer and providing support is not good enough, Target Ovarian Cancer also revealed.
Annwen Jones OBE, Chief Executive of Target Ovarian Cancer, said: “While there has been some improvement in recent years, our report clearly shows that we now need action taken to secure progress which is faster, further and fairer.
“We are hopeful that with the right targeted investment and backing from the government, we can achieve this together, prolonging and saving lives.”
Since the charity’s last report in 2016, there have been advances to transform the lives of those living with ovarian cancer, with new government funding to bring awareness to the issues and introduce groundbreaking new treatments.
But the new study found more still needs to be done.
Visit targetovariancancer.org.uk to find out more or access its support line.
