Ovarian cancer Screening

Ovarian cancer is ranked 5th among cancer killers for American women. Most women have no symptoms until the disease has progressed toward its advanced stages and as the disease progresses, survival rates sharply drop. However, women can be cured with existing treatment methods if they detect the cancer early. There is a 24-year-long study conducted by the Ovarian Cancer Screening Program that showed annual screening greatly improves early detection and can save lives. Since the program began in 1987, more than 200,000 screenings have been performed on more than 37,000 Kentucky women and they have found more than 447 ovarian tumors and 76 detected malignancies.

The Ovarian Cancer Screening Program offers free screenings and are available at six locations throughout the state that include:

•Markey Cancer Center, 800 Rose Street, UK, Lexington
•Floyd County Health Department, 283 Goble Street, Prestonsburg
•Hardin County Health Department, 580 Westport Rd, Elizabethtown
•Mason County Health Department, 120 West 3rd Street, Maysville
•McCracken County Health Department, 916 Kentucky Avenue, Paducah
•Pulaski County Health Department, 45 Roberts Street, Somerset

The screening procedure is painless and lasts around 15 minutes.

Women are the primary caretakers in many our Kentucky families, but they often put her own well-being below that of their children and spouses. I strongly urge women to take advantage of these free screenings across the state because taking responsibility for our own health will ultimately improve the health of our loved ones.

The Ovarian Cancer Screening Program is open to women age 50 or older, or women over the age of 25 who have a family history of ovarian cancer. For more information, call (859) 323-4687 or (800) 766-8279.