Ovarian cancer is a malicious tumor on a female’s reproductive glands. It’s the 8th most common type of cancer and affects one woman in every group of 72. As with other cancers, the longer it goes undiagnosed, the less of a chance there is to remove it. If found early and the cancer is still local, the patient has a 92% survival rate. Once it has spread to the local lymph nodes, this chance reduces to 71%. If the cancer metastasizes elsewhere in the body, chances lower to a 27% survival rate.

There are a few things that may add to a woman’s risk factors, which includes starting menstruation before 12 years old, a late onset of menopause after 52 years old, a genetic mutation, and the ingestion of fertility drugs. The presence of risk factors do not guarantee ovarian cancer, it only increases the chances of contracting it. Signs of ovarian cancer may include abdominal pressure, pelvic pain, a persistence of indigestion, gas, constipation, and/or nausea, a constant need to urinate, and a loss of appetite. As with the risk factors, just having a symptom does not mean cancer. The only symptom that should cause immediate concern would be seeing any amount of menstrual blood after menopause. If this happens, you should see a doctor immediately.

For those fearing ovarian cancer, or possessing one or more of the risk factors and wanting to prevent contracting the disease, safety may come in the form of food. These foods may also help people who already have cancer and want to help reduce it. The first food is endives, a vegetable that looks like a white tulip. If eaten raw two times a week, studies have shown that it can reduce the risk of cancer by 75%. It works by cutting of nutrients to cancer cells, killing them off. The next nutrient is omega-3 fatty acids, which can be found in any fish. Omega-3 can provide a 30% risk reduction, and it’s recommended to take it two to three times a week in servings about the size of one’s palm. Red onions also help, containing four different cancer fighting flavinoids. Boiling will kill 30% of these flavinoids, so treat the onion gently by sautéing it in a pan. A half a cup of onions every day will help prevent cancer, but onions are so versatile that it’s not too challenging. These foods put together can create the ultimate anti-ovarian cancer meal.

To compile these foods into a simple dish, simply cook a sea bass with a little olive oil in a pan, seasoned to taste. While it’s cooking, create a sauce out of sautéed garlic and red onion, tomatoes, capers, lemon juice, and turmeric. Every ingredient has its individual cancer fighting properties. Pour the sauce over the fish once it’s cooked and add a side of endive salad.

Cancer is a scary disease, but doesn’t have to be if steps are taken to prevent it. Antioxidants and cancer fighting agents may protect the body. Still, all the protective food in the world will not guarantee a safe life, so annual checkups with the doctor are recommended. Any change in diet to provide special protection from specific diseases should also be noted to the doctor. Between help at home and medical assistance, a long, healthy life should be obtainable to anybody.

I glanced through several articles and most of the work is being done on rats. This is pretty typical of the research process. Medical research begins with test tube trials, then moves on to rats, then to primates and if all goes well, human trials. It is a process that takes years to develop a pharmaceutical. 

The report I am working through (Hot water-extracted Lycium Barbarum and Rehmannia Glutinosa inhibit proliferation and induce apoptosis of hepatocellular carcinoma cells) was published July of 2006 in the World Journal of Gastroenterology. The research was done at Taipei Medical University, as a joint effort between the School of Nutrition and Health Sciences, the School of Pharmacy, and the Division of Internal Medicine. The research is part of a trend to study with modern methods the many traditional medicines of China.  This particular study was done to determine the effects of the Goji Berry (Lycium Barbarum) and Chinese Foxglove (Rehmannia glutinosa) on liver cancer arising from Hepatitis C. The researchers made a “tea” of the two herbs and from this, extracted the polysaccharides (a long string of sugar molecules). Thus, they created substances referred to as LBE (lycium barbarum extract) and RGE (rehmannia glutinosa extract).