Symptoms and risk factors of ovarian cancer: a survey in primary care

Abstract

In spite of the increased awareness of ovarian cancer symptoms, the predictive value of symptoms remains very low. The aim of this paper is to obtain the views of general practitioners (GPs) in relation to symptom-based detection of ovarian cancer and to assess their knowledge for family history of breast and/or ovarian cancer as a predisposing factor for ovarian cancer. In this questionnaire survey, postal questionnaires were sent to 402 GPs in 132 primary care clinics, out of which we obtained 110 replies (27.4%). Approximately 26% of respondent GPs thought that the symptoms were more likely to be frequent, sudden, and persistent, and one-fifth were unsure of the importance of family history of breast cancer in relation to ovarian cancer. The participant GPs scored a set of symptoms for their relevance to ovarian cancer from 0 (not relevant) to 10 (most relevant). The highest scored symptoms were abdominal swelling (mean ± SD, 8.19 ± 2.33), abdominal bloating (7.01 ± 3.01), and pelvic pain (7.46 ± 2.26). There was a relative lack of awareness for repetitive symptoms as well as gastrointestinal symptoms as an important feature in a symptom-based detection of ovarian cancer.

Figure 1

Box-whisker plot showing the mean ± SD of 14 symptoms that are relevant to ovarian cancer on the scale of 0 to 10 (n = 92; 0 = not relevant symptom, 10 = most relevant symptom). Abdominal swelling (mean ± SD, 8.19 ± 2.33) is the highest scored symptom while vaginal discharge (3.25 ± 2.9) scored least, suggesting its relatively less relevance to ovarian cancer.