How to Check for Ovarian Cancer at Home?

UPDATED ON 16 FEB. 2022

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Ovarian cancer is on the rise among both young and older women. The death rates are higher than other gynecological cancers and about 3% of all cancers in women are ovarian cancer. 

Cancer treatment depends upon how fast it gets diagnosed and treated. Early diagnoses can allow doctors to begin treatment at the right time and save a life.

Early diagnosis depends upon how well you detect initial signs and symptoms and reach a doctor. In this case, a lot of women wonder if they can check for ovarian cancer at home.

Like other home testing kits available for pregnancy or other diseases like HIV and in recent times even for covid, are there any home test kits for ovarian cancer?

Let’s know about some basics of ovarian cancer and if there are any kits to detect it.

Ovarian Cancer and Its Causes

Ovarian cancer starts when cells grow abnormally and multiply at a fast pace. These cells then form a mass resulting in a tumor. Moreover, doctors don’t know a specific cause that results in this cancer. It is seen that some mutations in the DNA can result in abnormal cell growth.

However, there are certain risk factors of ovarian cancer like:

• Old age
• Gene changes
• Family History
• Obesity
• Endometriosis

Moreover, for early diagnoses and early treatment, you should know about the symptoms of ovarian cancer. Once you know them, you stay aware of the disease. 

Let’s know about the symptoms in detail.

Early Warning Signs and symptoms of ovarian cancer

The problem with ovarian cancer is that it produces non-specific symptoms that can be confused with other benign conditions, like gastric trouble. Hence, if you know these symptoms or observe any such changes in the body, you can immediately report them to your physician. 

These symptoms of ovarian cancer include:

These symptoms can easily be confused for any other normal medical conditions like stomach issues, but remember to seek medical advice if these symptoms last for more than a few weeks or are noticed every day.

Furthermore, let’s come back to the ‘at home ovarian cancer test kit’.

Are there any at-home testing kits for ovarian cancer?

A study led by UW Medicine researchers has found that at-home genetic testing kits for ovarian cancer risk are showing good results compared to the current typical protocol for genetic testing that needs repeated clinic visits and counselling.

At-home testing kits detect your risk of ovarian cancer instead of detecting the presence of cancer itself. It helps to identify the amount of risk and take preventive measures accordingly. 

No doubt, at-home tests are affordable and accessible and offer the possibility of a better understanding of one’s cancer risk. However, these kits may not be 100% reliable, and more study is required to prove their effectiveness. 

Conclusion

Detecting ovarian cancer at home is not possible, although a lot of research is going on to make it happen in the future. But for now, there are some kits that detect your risk and help you prevent ovarian cancer.

Until then, remember to keep a record of your symptoms and how often they occur, or if they are getting worse over time. Speak with a doctor about them to know if you need an in-office screening for ovarian cancer detection. It will be best to know your risk and get the annual examination done by a gynecologist. 

Our expert gynecologist and oncologist have detected many cases of cancer at an early stage. If you think you are at risk, book an appointment with our cancer specialists. 

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