improving outcomes for patients living with ovarian cancer

an ovarian cancer diagnosis can be very frightening, but the head of gynaecologic oncology at the odette cancer centre and sunnybrook health sciences centre, dr. allen covens, says patients have many reasons to remain positive. “modern statistics are much better than they used to be,” says dr. covens, pointing to promising clinical trials and novel treatments. “that is how we make advances. the therapeutics we have available today, at some point, were investigational and in a clinical trial.  

“we’ve really changed ovarian cancer from an acute disease to a chronic disease,” says dr. covens, who is also professor and chair of gynaecologic oncology at the university of toronto​.   

“we may not have a cure, but we are now talking about living with ovarian cancer, where we weren’t before.” – dr. allan covens  

new approaches are increasingly enabling healthcare providers to tailor therapy and prevention strategies to individual patient. this gives dr. covens much confidence. “new advancements have been coming over the past several years and are accelerating almost on a yearly basis,” he says​.   

advances in genetics and molecular analysis are making it possible to identify the factors that put a person at risk for a particular disease and what causes the condition. “it’s not simple and easy, because we’re looking for markers that drive the cancer and then we need to have treatments that affect that process,” dr. covens says. “but those are increasing. i am amazed every month at the number of new therapeutics in oncology, and there’s still a lot of investigation and expansion development that’s going to happen.”  

diagnosis, a key factor  

“a challenge with identifying ovarian cancer is the signs and symptoms of the disease can be very difficult to identify and decipher. they are frequently similar to other, more common and benign conditions, such as abdominal pain, swelling or bloating, changes in bowel movements and frequent or urgent need to urinate,” says dr covens.  

this challenge often results in late diagnosis, which is why about 75 per cent of women with ovarian cancer are diagnosed at later stages (stage iii/iv) ⁱⁱ . nevertheless, dr covens underlines that progress has been made on that front. “i think access to knowledge about the disease both from a healthcare provider and patient point of view is key. and the good news is that it has increased. also, the number of patients that i see now that were investigated and managed by general gynaecologists, has dramatically declined over the past decade. more patients are being managed earlier and earlier by the appropriate specialties.”  

lillas hatala, widow, mother, grandmother and ovarian cancer patient

a patient’s healing journey, inspired by a fulfilling life  

lillas hatala noticed abdominal discomfort that just wouldn’t go away. while holding her two-year-old grandson on her right side, she noticed a sharp pain in her abdomen.   

after seeking medical attention, she underwent surgery to remove an ovarian cyst, which was when ovarian cancer was discovered in her right fallopian tube.   

since the initial shock of her diagnosis, lillas has learned to accept the changing circumstances of her life. after her ovarian cancer diagnosis in february 2019, hatala underwent chemotherapy, but she experienced a reoccurrence a year later.    

“acceptance is a big thing. my hope has changed from medium-to-long term pleasure to even just today. how can i laugh more, love more, find more joy in the moment?” – lillas hatala, patient  

advancements in ovarian cancer care are bringing hope to lillas and the thousands of canadian women who live with the disease. “it’s a godsend,” she says. “after my first recurrence, a new treatment option became available that i qualified for.”  

lillas says her healing journey and cancer care have provided her with the inspiration she needs to live a fulfilling life. “it’s a process, so you know it’s ok to not feel ok sometimes and then there’ll be lots of times where you’re feeling many of the blessings and the journey.” 
 

lisa toltl, medical director, oncology, gsk canada

gsk-focused on maximizing patient survival  

gsk is a global biopharma company with the ambition and purpose to unite science, technology and talent to get ahead of disease together  

in oncology, gsk is focused on maximizing patient survival through transformational medicines. its disease areas of focus are blood cancers, gynaecologic cancers and other solid tumours.  

gynaecologic cancers are some of the most common cancers affecting women. in 2020, nearly 1.4 million women around the world were diagnosed with a gynaecologic cancer ⁱⁱⁱ . gsk is focused on developing new medicines across a range of different modalities, both as monotherapy and in combination for a variety of cancers, including ovarian and endometrial.   

“we are committed to supporting continued innovation and access to medicine in gynaecologic cancers and keeping the patient’s voice at the heart of our mission. awareness around gynaecologic cancers, including the signs and symptoms, is extremely important.  ensuring canadians are well-informed may improve the likelihood of discovering the disease early and having a positive outcome.” – lisa toltl, medical director, oncology, gsk canada  

about ovarian cancer  

ovarian cancer is a form of gynaecologic cancer that occurs due to the abnormal and uncontrolled growth of cells from the ovaries, fallopian tubes or peritoneum. ^iv  

• ovarian cancer is the 8th most common cancer in women and is the most fatal gynaecological cancer in canada.ⁱ 
• about 75 % of women with ovarian cancer are diagnosed at later stages (stage iii/iv). ⁱⁱ 
• nearly 75 % of women diagnosed with advanced ovarian cancer will experience relapse. ⁱⁱ

references 

ⁱ canadian cancer society. ovarian cancer statistics. 2020 

ii lheureux, s., braunstein, m., & oza, a. m. (2019). epithelial ovarian cancer: evolution of management in the era of precision medicine. ca: a cancer journal for clinicians, 69(4), 280-304. 

iii sung h, ferlay j, siegel r, et al. global cancer statistics 2020: globocan estimates of incidence and mortality worldwide for 36 cancers in 185 countries. ca cancer j clin. 2021.doi:10.3322/caac.21660 

iv drapkin, ri. ovarian cancer. national organization for rare disorders (nord). https://rarediseases.org/rare-diseases/ovarian-cancer/. accessed april 2020. 

this story was provided by gsk canada for commercial purposes.  

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