Archive for September, 2008
Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month: Signs & Symptoms
Right now I want to turn attention to just the facts ma’am–what all women need to know about potential symptoms of ovarian cancer and what exactly you should be asking of your doctor if you experience them.
Ovarian cancer has been called the “Silent Killer” because it often isn’t discovered until it has spread to other parts of the abdomen; as you know from the facts from the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund posted in the O foods post, once ovarian cancer reaches later stages, the survival rate beyond five years drops to just 45%. When detected and treated early on, though, the five-year survival rate from ovarian cancer is greater than 92%.
But ovarian cancer isn’t silent! As many ovarian cancer awareness organizations say, “It whispers–so listen!”
Here are some common signs and symptoms of ovarian cancer:
- Vague but persistent and unexplained gastrointestinal complaints;
- Pelvic and/or abdominal swelling and pain; bloating and/or feeling of fullness;
- Unexplained change in bowel habits;
- Frequency and/or urgency of urination;
- Unexplained weight gain or loss;
- New and unexplained abnormal postmenopausal vaginal bleeding.
If these symptoms are sudden and persist for more than 2 or 3 weeks, consult your gynecologist. A full pelvic exam, including the rectovaginal component, is the best screening method for ovarian cancer, and another test is a transvaginal ultrasound. Be sure to tell your doctor about your symptoms so she knows exactly what she should be looking for.
Ovarian cancer risk factors include:
- Peri- or postmenopause;
- Uninterrupted ovulation (no pregnancies and no prior use of oral contraceptives);
- Family or personal history of breast/ovarian cancer;
- Presence of BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene mutations.
The following may aid in prevention:
- Use of oral contraceptives for 5+ years;
- Multiple pregnancies/breastfeeding;
- Removal of ovaries or tubal ligation–these procedures may reduce but not eliminate risk.
For a handy guide to the signs and symptoms, risk factors, and prevention of ovarian cancer, print out the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund’s tent card (from which the above facts come). Better yet, print out a stack and hand them out to all the women in your life!
And here are some more ideas on what you can do for Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month.
Tomorrow, another O recipe!
meet the newest about.com guide!
When my mom came to visit in June, she brought my “good” jewelry that I had left behind. One item was my law school ring, pictured at left, which I actually only got because my grandmother begged me to let her buy it for me as a graduation gift.
I told her I wouldn’t wear it much, but she didn’t care. She just wanted me to have it.
So I agreed, and then I saw how much they cost. Yikes!
I couldn’t possibly let her spend that much on a ring (think law school ring versus household bills for a couple months–on a fixed income), so I told her the price was half of what it was, and I chipped in the rest. By the way, she passed away two weeks after I found out that I had passed the bar exam in October of that year, and I’ve always felt she waited to hear the good news (which, incidentally, arrived on my 25th birthday) before leaving us.
When I saw the ring this summer, I was reminded of all that surrounded it–my grandmother; her love, support, and generosity; my many years of hard work; and lots and lots of stress overcome–so I decided to wear it. Seeing it there on my hand every day reminds me of where I’ve been, the love and support I’ve had and continue to have, and also what I’ve accomplished.
And it feels darn good.
A couple weeks after I started wearing it this summer, I saw an opening at About.com for the Guide to Law School. Ah, law school . . . been there, done that, and confident that I could write about it and help others like me who had *zero* frame of reference for what they were about to encounter, I applied.
Literally a few hours later, I was thrust into the About.com “training,” which is really a several-week long interview process during which applicants put together a site hoping to be chosen at the end.
Well they picked me! You’re now reading the personal blog of the About.com Guide to Law School.
And yes, I continue to wear my ring. Since my grandmother passed away, I’ve thought of her every day anyway, but now I feel just a little bit closer too.
Do you have a good luck charm?
You Know You’re in Italy When…
Yesterday over at Twitter, the always lovely and informative ExpatCoach asked those of us with, ahem, Italian experience to fill in the blank:
You know you’re in Italy when…
A smattering of what ExpatCoach, Cherrye, Miss Expatria, Tina, and I came up with, within minutes:
- …you can have a conversation with a stranger comprised entirely of facial expressions, hand gestures, and no words.
- …you can say, “Boh?” and you’ve said a mouthful.
- …you have to APPLY to complete an application for something.
- …you wait in line for three hours at the Post Office…to pay a bill.
- …your taxi driver’s hands are too busy waving & threatening other drivers to actually touch the steering wheel.
- …you pour the wine over-handed and your guests gasp and bless themselves.
- …your ability to digest milk (at any time of day) and drink ice cold drinks even while eating hot food astounds.
- …perfect strangers worry about your catching a cold because you’re not dressed warmly enough. In July.
- …you’re handed a scarf when you say your throat feels a bit scratchy.
- …you’re the only person at IKEA without their entire extended family in tow.
- …someone you just met invites you to dinner at their house.
- …€5 on a bottle of wine is a splurge.
- …posted schedules, hours of operation, etc. mean precisely nothing (except sciopero ones).
- …someone, somewhere is in sciopero.
- …you get honked at for letting an old lady cross the street.
- …someone thinks your turkey wrap is a foreign food they’d never touch.
- …your friend says “I quit drinking coffee. Now I only have three cups a day.”
- …you find figs on your doorstep.
And now I’ll add:
- …your morning errands take you to one shop for produce, another for bread, another for cheese, and yet another for meat–and you love every single minute of it.
I thought this woud be a fun weekend fill-in, so Italophiles, play along please:
You know you’re in Italy when…
Need some inspiration?
And be sure to visit ExpatCoach at Career By Choice and show her some love!
Buon weekend!
love thursday:
dammi un bacio
“Dammi un bacio” means “Give me a kiss” in Italian, and here’s how you ask:
If that doesn’t work, cuddles are good too:
Happy Love Thursday everyone!
P.S. I’m updating this post to add information about Puppy Mill Awareness Day (September 20), which I just read about over at Callista’s Ramblings. Find out what you can do to stop the abuses and horrors that happen at puppy mills all over the world at Puppy Mill Awareness Day and get these people out of business once and for all.
There are plenty of adorable puppies and dogs at reputable animal shelters just waiting to be loved, so please try there first if you are ready for a new member of the family. If you’re in Italy, sadly, you probably don’t have to look farther than the side of the road (which is how a pregnant Stella (on the left in the photos) came into our lives).
Oatmeal Banana Craisin Muffins: O Foods for Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month
Here is a fast, easy, tasty (just like we like ’em!) O Food recipe based on one from Cooks.com.
Read on...
Michelle Kaminsky is an American attorney-turned-freelance writer who lived in her family's ancestral village in Calabria, Italy for 15 years. This blog is now archived.
Calabria Guidebook
Recipes
