Derailing that glib fatalism of a “silent killer” has been helping earlier detection. Bloating, difficulty eating, abdominal discomfort, change in urinary habits, and upper-leg pain may perhaps be something else, but a woman knows her own body. Feeling something new that persists over several weeks means it’s time to get a satisfactory diagnostic explanation, and not rest until you do, because ovarian cancer symptoms are too often misdiagnosed.
Making matters even worse, the fact men aren’t afflicted by ovarian cancer translated into virtually no medical research. When my late wife Corinne died from ovarian cancer in 1995, one needed a microscope to detect any ovarian cancer research money at all in Canada’s medical research budget: it was 0.034% of the total.
To change the cruel odds, I established the Corinne Boyer Fund for Ovarian Cancer Research and Treatment. Premier Mike Harris embraced the cause and his government contributed $2 million, half of which helped launch the Corinne Boyer Research Chair in Ovarian Cancer at University of Ottawa’s Medical School. Chair holder Dr. Barbara Vanderhyden and her team of researchers have ever since been making advances. “It took 10 years to build capacity for ovarian cancer research in Canada, and another 10 years for us to understand how ovarian cancer ticks,” she said this week. “The next ten are all about achieving that long-awaited impact on patient survival and quality of life.”
During those years the Corinne Boyer Fund morphed in Ovarian Cancer Canada, our country’s only national charity dedicated to overcoming this disease. This year Justin Trudeau’s government responded to pressure from women, researchers, and MPs by committing $10 million for a three-stage medical research program, including clinical trials, under Dr. Vanderhyden and Ovarian Cancer Canada’s network of researchers and patients.
First-line treatment of ovarian cancer is still surgery then chemotherapy, often resulting in remission, though recurrence is very high. Two new inhibitors counteract that. Because growing tumours need more blood vessels, a new anti-angiogenic drug Avastin (aka bevacizumab), which can block that process, was approved by Health Canada in 2015. A second new drug, Lynparza (aka olaparib), approved just four months ago, targets how cancers having a defect in their DNA repair mechanisms blocks this activity, leading to death of the tumor cells.
Ovarian Cancer Canada’s September “Walk of Hope” just raised $2 million, topping up the $27 million since the annual event’s inception – precious money for research, support, advocacy, and, most crucially, awareness. An on-line Forum at https://ovariancanada.org lets women connect across Canada to discuss treatments, symptoms, diet, exercise, and the many dimensions of living and dying.
A disease unique to women is no longer sidelined. Become aware, please!
