Cancer: Four symptoms that often ‘get missed’ resulting in ‘dangerous’ delays – doctor

There are thousands of new ovarian cancer cases in the UK every year. Ovarian cancer is where abnormal cells in the ovary begin to grow and divide in an uncontrolled way. Despite its prevalence, symptoms often go under the radar for too long. Symptoms are often non-specific so they “get missed”, warned Doctor Nighat Arif on ITV’s This Morning.

She continued: “It’s usually picked up at the fourth stage which indicates that the cancer has spread, which results in a poor prognosis.”

As the doc explained, stage four is particularly “dangerous”.

What should you be looking out for?

According to Doctor Nighat, persistent bloating for three weeks or more is one major red flag.

Feeling full quite quickly and loss of appetite are also telltale signs of the deadly disease.

According to the TV doc, if you feel a lump you should also “get that checked out”.

An often overlooked sign can surface during the menopausal phase of your life, added Doctor Nighat.

As the doc explained, if you have vaginal bleeding during the menopause, you should get it checked out.

As a rule of thumb, unusual bodily changes that persistent for more than three weeks are worth seeking a medical opinion about, says Doctor Nighat.

You also have an increased risk of ovarian cancer if you’ve had breast cancer in the past.

“The risk is higher in women diagnosed with breast cancer at a younger age, and those with oestrogen receptor negative (ER negative) breast cancer,” explains Cancer Research UK.

The charity continues: “Women who had bowel cancer at a young age have an increased risk of ovarian cancer compared to the general population.

“The increase in risk of ovarian cancer after previous cancer is likely to be partly due to inherited faulty genes such as BRCA 1 and 2, and Lynch syndrome.”