Ovarian cancer: Survivors Teaching Students – The Saturday paper – December 2018


Photo by Roman Kraft on Unsplash

Bronwyn Grout was just 31 when she was diagnosed with stage 3 ovarian cancer. It came as a huge shock. Although she had been suffering from symptoms such as “period-like” pain, her health practitioners had been telling her that at her age, therehttps://www.thesaturdaypaper.com.au/2018/12/01/ovarian-cancer-survivors-teaching-students/15435828007196 was nothing to worry about. Statistically, the chances of Grout having ovarian cancer were slim. So when her symptoms could be explained away with more obvious reasons, a miscarriage and a history of period pain, the possibility that it could be something much more ominous was overlooked.

Sadly, Grout’s story is not unusual. The symptoms of ovarian cancer – such as abdominal and pelvic pain, bloating and changes to bowel movements – are notoriously difficult to spot and easily mistaken for other more common illnesses such as irritable bowel syndrome.

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