What is ovarian cancer?

  Ovarian cancer is a kind of malignant tumor of ovarian tumor, which refers to malignant tumor growing on ovary, 90%-95% of which is primary cancer of ovary, and the other 5%-10% is primary cancer of other parts metastasized to ovary. Because ovarian cancer lacks symptoms in the early stage, and even if there are symptoms, they are not specific, and the role of screening is limited, so early diagnosis is difficult, and 60% to 70% of the cases are already in advanced stage when they are diagnosed, and the treatment effect of advanced cases is poor. Therefore, although the incidence rate of ovarian cancer is lower than that of cervical cancer and endometrial cancer and ranks third among gynecological malignancies, the mortality rate is higher than that of cervical cancer and endometrial cancer combined, ranking first among gynecological cancers and is the biggest threat to women’s health.  Because of the embryonic development, tissue anatomy and endocrine function of ovaries are complex, the tumors it suffers from may be benign or malignant. Because ovarian cancer is asymptomatic in early clinical stage, it is quite difficult to identify its tissue type, benignity and malignancy. Therefore, ovarian cancer is a major problem in terms of diagnosis and treatment. Over the years, experts have discussed a lot about the pathological patterns, clinical development rules and treatment plans of ovarian malignant tumors and accumulated a lot of experience. So far, the five-year survival rate is only 25%-30% according to domestic and international clinical data. Ovarian cancer is a relatively common disease, with about 1.4% of women suffering from this disease. However, if detected early, 90% of the patients can survive; if detected late, the cancer cells spread to the ovaries and the survival rate is less than 30%.