Ovarian Cancer
There's an urban legend going around urging women to have a CA-125 blood test for detecting ovarian cancer. While being proactive in your health management is highly recommended, a must even, following the advice of an urban legend, one that's based on one woman's experience, isn't recommended.
Cancer is a mystery to science, even with all the research and progress that's been made through the past many years. Be proactive in your health maintenance, especially if you are prone to cancer or are having health problems. Ovarian cancer is a deadly one, partially because it's not readily detected in its early stages.
The big problem with using the CA-125 blood test as a tool for screening ovarian cancer is that there are too many cases of false positives. Not only does the test sometimes fail to detect the cancer, but also there are other health issues, like endometriosis, fibroids, liver disease and pelvic infections, that trigger positive results. Taking this approach to your health care causes costs to rise, not only because of additional time in the office and lab, but also because of false leads to unnecessary surgery.
The CA-125 blood tests are better used for tracking the efficacy of treatment of ovarian cancer. Research continues for ways to detect ovarian cancer -- the fourth leading cause of cancer death in women, after lung, breast and colorectal cancers. One promising test is measuring the levels of lysophosphatidic acid (LPA stimulates the growth of ovarian cancer cells), though it's a slow process of researching screens or treatments. The most recent studies found for this article (published in July 2008) were dated in 2005, and most were 2000-2002.
The bottom line is to pay attention to your health and visit the doctor when you don't feel well or have persistent health problems. When you receive an email urging specific action for your health, check out Snopes.com and Google the issue. Don't forward such emails without first checking their validity so you don't spread false information.
Stay proactive in your health maintenance, and avoid unnecessary blood tests and surgeries.
