Denise’s wife of 33 years, Michelle, lived with ovarian cancer for 13 years. She went through six kinds of chemo, two kinds of radiation, and three clinical trials. But her ovarian cancer came back again and again. She died in April 2023 at 68 years old.
In this interview, Denise speaks from her experience as a caregiver to her wife about why we need to start talking more about ovarian cancer, and talking loudly.
Q: You and Michelle went through so much after her diagnosis and learned a lot about ovarian cancer. What do you want people to know?
A: All you have to do is Google “ovarian cancer” and you’ll see the daunting statistics. Ovarian cancer is the deadliest of gynecologic cancers. While 15th most common cancer among women, ovarian cancer is the sixth leading cause of cancer-related death among women. Only 20% of ovarian cancer is found at an early stage. The five-year survival rate is 50.8%. In 2024, about 19,680 new cases will be diagnosed, and 12,740 women will die of ovarian cancer in the United States. Ovarian cancer rates are highest in women aged 55-64 years. The median age at which women are diagnosed with ovarian cancer is 63, but that doesn’t mean younger women aren’t at risk.
Q: Given these statistics, what advice do you want people to know?
The advice I want to give women, especially women with a family background of cancer, is to be aware of your body. You have to be your own advocate. Some of the early symptoms of ovarian cancer, if you even have them, are bloating, pelvic or abdominal pain, difficulty eating, or feeling full, backache, fatigue, frequent urination, changes in bowel habits and unexplained changed in weight. These can often be dismissed by you and your doctor. So, if you’re feeling any of these, demand an ultrasound since pap smears do not screen for ovarian cancer.
Q: You have said it’s time to get loud about ovarian cancer. What do you mean?
A: Ovarian cancer has been called “the silent killer” because of the vague symptoms. But women are dying because we aren’t talking about it enough and we’re not seeing the same level of support that we do for other types of cancer that affect women. My wife was a big women’s basketball fan. We were very frustrated when women’s sports, particularly women’s basketball, would do breast cancer awareness events, but never ovarian cancer.
I’ve actually been told that people don’t want to talk about ovaries. Although there have been some treatment advancements in the last 15 years, it’s not enough. Ovarian cancer definitely needs more funding to find better treatments for people who already affected with the disease and better testing to detect the cancer earlier. We also need public advocates. I feel strongly that until people, famous and otherwise, start talking about it, publicly and loudly, ovarian cancer will continue to quietly kill many women and devastate families like mine.
Q: How are you planning to get loud about ovarian cancer?
A: After my wife died, I never wanted to hear the words “ovarian cancer” again because she had gone through so much. But it is a year later now and I’ve decided to be an advocate for ovarian cancer awareness starting with women’s professional sports. I owe it to my wife.
I also want to do everything I can to let women with ovarian cancer and families know about the help, support and information that is available. The Clearity Foundation is a wonderful organization that is there is help. Everyone at Clearity was incredible to my wife and myself. I encourage others to reach out to them.
Sources