Endometriosis now a risk factor for ovarian cancer, survey shows
What you need to know:
- Endometriosis affects about 10 per cent of women and girls of reproductive globally, which is about 190 million.
- Symptoms of endometriosis include painful periods, painful ovulation, pain during or after sexual intercourse, heavy bleeding, chronic pelvic pain, fatigue, pain during bowel movement and, or, urination and depression or anxiety.
Women suffering from endometriosis have a likelihood of getting some types of ovarian cancer, says a new study.
Endometriosis is a painful disorder where a tissue similar to the one that lines the inner walls of the uterus grows outside the uterine cavity of women of reproductive age, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
Researchers from the University of Queensland published their findings at the Cell Reports Medicine journal after analysing the genes of women with endometriosis and another set of women with ovarian cancer.
Data from about 15,000 women suffering from endometriosis and another 25,000 with ovarian cancer was used in the analysis.
Endometriosis affects about 10 per cent of women and girls of reproductive globally, which is about 190 million. Symptoms of endometriosis include painful periods, painful ovulation, pain during or after sexual intercourse, heavy bleeding, chronic pelvic pain, fatigue, pain during bowel movement and, or, urination and depression or anxiety. Endometriosis can also cause infertility.
The study found an association between endometriosis and two types of ovarian cancer — Clear cell ovarian cancer and the Endometrioid ovarian carcinoma.
The researchers say the survey findings will help provide insights on endometriosis that could help in coming up with treatment options that disrupt the association between endometriosis and the ovarian cancer subtypes.
Dr Sally Mortlock, who was part of the study, said in a statement that there is need for more information about how the cancer develops, associated risk factors, and pathways shared between endometriosis and different types of ovarian cancer.
“Overall, studies have estimated that one in 76 women are at risk of developing ovarian cancer in their lifetime and having endometriosis increases this slightly to one in 55, so the overall risk is still very low,” she said in the statement published by the university.
The researchers explored specific areas of DNA that increase the risk of both diseases and identified genes in ovary and uterus tissue that could be targets for therapy and valuable to understand the link between the disorders and to disrupt biological pathways initiating cancer.
The report says ovarian cancer is the ‘deadliest gynaecologic cancer’.
“Fewer than 50 per cent of women survive beyond five years after diagnosis due to the rapid development of chemo resistance and the absence of effective early detection strategies,” indicates the study.
