Surviving Ovarian Cancer

My sister has ovarian cancer also stage four. She is not surviving. She just had test done to see if the cancer returned and it has. It is now in her lymph node.
What treatment(s) did you have for your cancer? What did you eat and drink during your treatments. What did you do to help with your survival? Do you know anything about returning cancer and if it is in the lymph node>

Hi Jan,
So good to hear that there are survivors over 5 years out there. Congratulations and God bless you. I am almost 7 months in remission- stage III. Feel great and had a wonderful summer. Back to teaching 8th graders soon. I am 58. Any suggestions on how to deal with the anxiety of the CA-125 test every 3 months?

Take care.

Dear Barbara, Please take one day at a time. I did not do anything special in regards to my diet while on chemo and after but I did and do try to eat healthier even though I thought I did so before. And I do take supplements to boost the immune system. I think it is a good idea. Although the docs for whatever reason don't seem to want you to take them much during treatment. ???? I had mostly taxol for my chemo. 8 treatments. Wishing you the best........be well, Jan

Hi Mary, I was diagnosed in May 01, stage 3. Instead of worrying about my next CA125 test, I spend the time researching and putting into pratice on what I have learned to improve my immune system. This includes eating nutritiously and exercise. I am pretty sure what I am doing is right, and should the cancer appear again, I will still continue to do what I am doing, except I will have to do more of it. I am still reading and learning, and recently I have added self-massage to improve my health. I also do qigong and deep breathing exercises. I am also walking 45 mins on my treadmill 5 days a week to lose weight. I lean towards a fruits and vegetable diet with a small amount of animal protein. I make my own desserts with beans and unrefined sugar or molasses. I have given up coffee for green tea. I stay away from white flour and dairy products. It took me more than a year to lose 3 pounds, but I believe it is important to stay fit. My last CA125 test was in July - it was a 6.

Hi, I have stage three ovarian cancer and have survived for six years. It has returned in the lymphnode by the aorta in the middle of the body and was too close to organs to be operated on. I was put on carboplatium chemo and am doing well now. I was considered stage three as originally it went to the lymph nodes, but not organs. so far so good. There is a book called Beating Cancer with Nutrition put out by a doctor as the Cancer Treatment Centers of America and it is wonderful and will give you diet information as well as vitamins and minerals to take which I did and should get back to!! Think positive. Maureen

Hi Barbara! My ovarian cancer (stage 3C), in the beginning, was also detected in a lymph node at my aorta three years ago. I had a complete hysterectomy with removal of this lymph node. Since then, my cancer had returned and showed up in various other lymph nodes. However, the chemo can kill the cancer in the lymph nodes as well. I have been receiving chemo again now for two years even tho there has been lymph node involvement with no spreading of the disease. The key is to keep up with all follow-up visits for early detection of any recurrence of the disease and start treatment ASAP. I also advise thinking positive and just eat as healthy as possible. They typically recommend a diet high in fruits and vegetables. Dietary protein is also very important while on chemotherapy. I wish your sister and yourself the best of luck! Debbie

Happy to hear you are doing better. Sounds like you have had your challenges along the way. I do believe one extremely positive move is that you are continuing to be involved in the world of work! Sometimes, I get the impression that when we quit working, shortly following diagnosis; we begin to disassociate ourselves with a meaningful aspect of our life. Just my humble opinion!
Sally

Maureen: I also have a cancerous lymph node high in the aortic track and it apparently is inoperable. So, we are waiting to see what happens. My doctor basically has offered little by way of positive outlook. She simply has indicated that chemo is not working, radiation is not likely to be effective, and it is not operable. So, I pray a lot! Have you sought another opinion, perhaps from one of the more advanced hospitals i.e. MD Anderson, Sloan, Mayo etc????
Sally

Hi Sally, I didn't mean to sound like nothing had been done for my cancer near the aorta. It has. I had six treatments of Taxol and Carboplatin and I have checked out fine so far and it is just shy of one month since my last treatment. I hope you can have something done and soon. It was relatively small when it was discovered, but has cleared up now. Good luck. Maureen

Thanks for your email. I am following a diet similar to yours and have exercised in some way or another (biking or walking) for over 25 years. However, I do use dairy products and have added flaxseed and soy to my diet. Keep up the good work and I will work on losing some of my anxiety before my next gynecologic oncologist visit in November.
Take care.