Ovarian cancer and your chances of survival are hard to calculate – Although statistics do exist there are many factors that can affect your chances that it is hard to be exact. Although generally the main factor for survival is how early your cancer has been diagnosed, this can vary depending on the type of tumor and whether it is located anywhere else in your body

As with any type of cancer the chances of survival are monitored by the 5 year rule – meaning that the patient is still alive 5 years after being diagnosed with cancer – Generally after this time the cancer will not return,

In the very early stages for ovarian cancer generally around 90% of women diagnosed as this stage survive. This figure can drop depending the age of the patient, if they already suffer from ill health or the type of tumor that they have.

At stage 2 of the cancer, where it has start to spread beyond the ovaries around 7 out of 10 women will survive at least 5 years.

At the more advanced stages of ovarian cancer it is not surprising that the statistics for survival are less. Those first diagnosed with ovarian cancer at stage 3 of the cancer have between a 15% and a 35% chance of survival for at least 5 years. The reason that there is such a wide range in this statistic is because it depends on where the cancer has spread to and how face it has spread.

At the final advance stage of ovarian cancer (Stage 4) the chances are between just 5% and 14%. Once again this depends how much the cancer has progressed through the body. Other than that there are 2 other factors that can affect survival rates. This is the grade of the cancer –How abnormal your cancer cells look and whether the tumor(s) you have can be removed

Ovarian cancer is the 4th most comment type of cancer diagnosed in women in the UK. Around 6,600 women each year are diagnosed with the disease. Only breast, lung and bowel cancer are more common. Out of every 100 women diagnosed with cancer around 5 of those are told they have ovarian cancer.

There is still exact rhyme or reason as to why one person gets ovarian cancer whilst another may not; however there are some ways that you are able to decrease the risk.

Ovarian cancer can be down to family history – If other members of your family have contracted this disease then this makes it more likely you will, the risk of ovarian cancer also increases with age. Largely ovarian cancer is due to gene changes during a woman’s life. You may also just be unlucky and have the faulty genes… BRCA1 and BRCA2 increase the risk of both ovarian and breast cancer.

Your periods can also indicate the likely hood of you getting ovarian cancer – For explain if you have a late menopause or you started your periods at a young age then you have a slight increase on the risk of getting ovarian cancer. This is purely down to the fact that your ovaries will have produced eggs for longer.

Hormone replacement treatment has shown some signs of affecting your chances of contracting ovarian cancer. Being overweight increases your risk by about 33%.

There are also ways that you are able to improve your chances of not getting this disease. For example having children & breast feeding can decrease the chances of you getting the disease – Being sterilised or having a hysterectomy also shows signs of decreasing the risk.

Some types of contraception can also help your chances and it may be worth discussing this with your doctor.

Your chances of survival from ovarian cancer depend on many factors – How early you have been diagnosed, if the cancer has spread & if it has spread where it has spread too. Usually when it comes to cancer doctors use the term “5 year survival”, this means that after your cancer has been diagnosed you have survived 5 years. Of course this does not mean you will only survive 5 years, but after this time there is a good chance of the cancer not returning.

With Ovarian cancer there are 4 stages of how far the cancer has progressed. In general though in the UK around 34% of women diagnosed with ovarian cancer will survive at least 5 year and around 30% will survive at least 10 years.

Stage 1 –This first stage of cancer, meaning that the cancer is limited to the ovaries. Statistics on this stage of cancer are hard to find, however because it has been caught in the early stages around 90% of women diagnosed survive at least 5 years.

Stage 2 - This is the advanced stage of stage 1 cancer. Around 7 out of 10 women diagnosed with cancer at this stage will survive at least 5 years.

Stage 3 – Around 15-35 out of every 100 women will survive this stage of cancer. This stage is harder to put into statistics as it means that the cancer has spread. The chances of survival vary largely depending on where the cancer has spread too.

Stage 4 is the most advanced stage of cancer & means that the cancer has spread to other parts of the body. Around 5%-14% of women diagnosed at this stage will survive.

Of course as with any statistics this varies from individual to individual – Depending on the size of your tumors, where they have spread too and your overall health