Ovarian Cancer: Jennifer's Patient Story

What happened, in summary

Jennifer Thorn was 48 when pain while lying on her side led to blood tests and scans in April 2021. She was diagnosed with late-stage ovarian cancer and began treatment at Dana-Farber. Her first chemotherapy combination, carboplatin and paclitaxel, did not control the cancer, so her team changed treatment to carboplatin and gemcitabine. The second regimen worked well enough to shrink the cancer for surgery.

The operation was extensive. Surgeons removed her ovaries, parts of her intestines, and her spleen, and created a stoma. Thorn later nicknamed the stoma “Sally,” using humor to adjust to a major change in daily life. She continued gemcitabine treatment and dealt with treatment side effects, but remained focused on staying active and hopeful.

After about 2 years of treatment, Thorn said cancer had changed how she used her time. She reduced the emphasis she had once placed on work and made more room for family, including traveling with her daughter, attending her son’s lacrosse games, and walking her dogs with her husband. At the time of the story, she was still living with ovarian cancer and continuing gemcitabine.