Stage IV Ovarian Cancer: Bre's Patient Story
This ovarian cancer diagnosis at a glance
- Stage at diagnosis
- Stage IV
- Sex
- female
- Treatment
- chemotherapy, clinical trial, surgery and hormone therapy
- Outcome
- Responding Well
Treatment course, step by step
- Received chemotherapy, but after 1 month a CT scan showed continued tumor growth.
- Started a clinical trial in late March 2012 using Avastin and Sovenifib.
- Nearly 8 months of trial treatment shrank the tumors.
- Underwent debulking surgery in November 2012 that removed 90% of the cancer.
- Started hormonal therapy and had been receiving it for 2 months at the latest update.
What happened, in summary
At age 26, this patient had worsening bloating, stomach problems and abdominal pain that several doctors initially dismissed. An emergency-room CT scan showed large tumors, and surgery that had been expected to be straightforward instead revealed Stage IV ovarian cancer, with tumors wrapped around the colon.
The patient first received chemotherapy, but after 1 month a CT scan showed that the cancer had not responded and the tumors were still growing. In late March 2012, the patient entered a clinical trial using Avastin and Sovenifib. Nearly 8 months of treatment shrank the tumors. In November 2012, debulking surgery removed about 90% of the cancer; the remaining disease was considered too dangerous to remove.
At the time of the story, the patient had been on hormonal therapy for 2 months. A recent CT scan showed the remaining tumors calcifying and dying, which offered hope even though lifelong treatment was expected for the low-grade cancer. The experience also motivated the patient to raise awareness about persistent ovarian cancer symptoms and the importance of advocating for further evaluation.
Where this story comes from
This is a lay summary of an account first published by MD Anderson. Read the original in full
How we source and attribute stories Accuracy and limitations
These are lay summaries of published cancer stories, for information only. No two cancers behave the same way, and nothing here predicts your own diagnosis or replaces advice from your oncology team. Read the full disclaimer