Mater doctors are warning women that the onset of menopause and perimenopause can sometimes mask life-threatening cases of ovarian cancer.
Around 1900 Australian women are expected to be diagnosed with ovarian cancer this year and around 1000 women will lose their lives to the disease.
During Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month, Mater women’s cancer specialists are warning that the signs of menopause and ovarian cancer often overlap – and that women should speak to their GP if they notice changes in their body.
When Jodie Roberts suffered months of fatigue and weight gain, she put her symptoms down to menopause.
The 49-year-old dismissed the changes in her body and focused on her hectic life as a mum-of-two and social worker at Mater’s South Brisbane hospitals.
But on New Year’s Eve 2024, her instincts told her something really was wrong.
She attended an emergency department, telling her family that she would be home in time to watch the fireworks from their balcony.
Instead she was admitted to hospital and on New Year’s Day received the devastating news that she had ovarian cancer. The next day doctors confirmed the disease had spread from her right ovary and was stage 4.
“For about six months I had just felt flat, just ‘off’, not myself,” Ms Roberts said.
“I was putting on weight around my stomach too – I thought I just needed to start exercising.
“I thought it was all related to perimenopause or menopause, chalked it up to that and carried on.”
Ovarian cancer is known as the ‘silent killer’ because of the difficulty of early-stage detection and lack of an effective screening test.
Following her diagnosis, Ms Roberts was referred to the gynaecological oncology team at Mater Hospital Brisbane – one of Queensland’s leading ovarian cancer treatment centres.
She began a course of chemotherapy at the Mater Cancer Care Centre, followed by a seven-hour procedure involving a full hysterectomy and removal of her ovaries, followed by further chemotherapy.
Ms Roberts, who has two sons aged 19 and 22, has returned to work full-time in Mater’s child protection team and is planning a dream trip to Europe, but knows that her cancer has a high risk of recurrence.
“It took me a lot of time to process what ovarian cancer really means,” Ms Roberts said.
“I knew very little about it, but I felt like I was a walking beacon of ovarian cancer. My cancer markers were measuring around 4000 at the beginning, today they’re down to 17.
“The statistics for ovarian cancer are not great, but I feel well and I’m so grateful to the many people at Mater who have treated and supported me – as well as my amazing family.
“I would have the treatment 100 times over if it meant that I could be here to see my sons fall in love, get married and have their own children.”
She has an important message for other women approaching perimenopause and menopause.
“You can attribute the symptoms of ovarian cancer to so many other things that women experience in menopause – but you shouldn’t,” she said.
“The symptoms are vague and that’s why ovarian cancer is so dangerous.
“Women need to prioritise their health and seek medical advice if something’s wrong.”
Her message is echoed by Dr Catherine Shannon, Senior Medical Oncologist at the Mater Cancer Care Centre.
“Ovarian cancer is most common in women over 60, but it can occur at any age, including during perimenopause and menopause,” Dr Shannon said.
“Many of the symptoms of perimenopause and menopause overlap with ovarian cancer and this is something that women need to be aware of.
“These symptoms include abdominal bloating, pelvic pain, changes in bowel habits, excessive fatigue and weight gain or loss.
“We encourage women to be aware of their own bodies and to report things that feel different to their GP.”
Dr Shannon also urged women to be aware of any family history of breast and ovarian cancer and to discuss this with their GP.
Ovarian Cancer Facts:
Around 1,900 Australian women are diagnosed with ovarian cancer each year.
Common symptoms include:
Abdominal bloating
Pelvic pain
Changes in bowel habits
Excessive fatigue
Unexplained weight gain or loss
Ovarian cancer is the deadliest gynaecological cancer, with a five-year survival rate of 46%.
Mater is the leading treatment and research centre for ovarian cancer in Queensland, treating more than 130 of the 300 women who are diagnosed with the disease each year.
There is no available screening test for ovarian cancer, which means many cases are well advanced by the time they are detected.
