3rd March 2026
An ‘Ovarian Cancer Awareness stand’ will be set up in the foyer of the Northern Ireland Cancer Centre the week beginning 02/03/26 (everyone welcome).
Symptoms of Ovarian Cancer often mimic those that are linked to more common, ever-day, less serious conditions. This can attribute to the difficulty surrounding early diagnosis.
Some of these symptoms (listed below) that occur regularly (especially more than 12 times a month) can include:
- persistent abdominal bloating / abdominal distension
- loss of appetite / difficulty eating / feeling full quickly after eating (early satiety)
- pelvic / abdominal pain
- urinary frequency / urgency
- altered bowel pattern (constipation / diarrhoea)
According to Cancer Research UK:
- ovarian cancer is the 6thmost common female cancer; 6th most common cause of cancer death
- 7600new ovarian cancer cases are diagnosed annually (2017-2019)
- there are approximately 3900ovarian cancer deaths annually (2021-2023)
- the risk of ovarian cancer increases with age
In Northern Ireland (as per NICR):
- statistics indicate that 200women were diagnosed per year (2017-2021) and 120 deaths noted per year (2018-2022)
- stage at diagnosis is one of the most important factors in ovarian cancer survival; with 5yr survival decreasing as stage increases
- 5yr survival ranged from 89.3%for stage 1 disease – to 11.5% for stage 4 disease (2013 – 2017)
There is evidence that many women with ovarian cancer can experience persistent symptoms that are common to the disease, for months before diagnosis. However, because women may not be aware of these symptoms and may not want to bother their GP, the disease can thus be at an advanced stage when diagnosed.
Any woman who experiences new or persistent symptoms is urged to visit their GP promptly for assessment. Whilst it is unlikely to be ovarian cancer, the advice is that you should not ignore persistent pelvic / abdominal symptoms.
The following websites may be helpful:
- targetovariancancer.org.uk
- macmillan.org.uk
- ovacome.org.uk
- eveappeal.org.uk
- ovarian.org.uk
- thisisGO.ie
Video of Adrina O’Donnell, Gynae Oncology Clinical Nurse Specialist, raising awareness of Ovarian Cancer.