Ovarian cancer risks are TWICE as high for women who suffer PTSD
Ovarian cancer risks are TWICE as high for women who suffer PTSD, study finds
- Between 10 and 12% of women suffer PTSD at some point in their lives
- That may put them at twice the risk of developing ovarian cancer, new Harvard University research suggests
- Few risk factors for the aggressive cancer are known
- The study authors say PTSD could be a risk factor that triggers ovarian cancer screening
Women affected by post-traumatic stress disorder are at twice the risk of developing aggressive ovarian cancer, warns a new study.
Researchers found those who suffered six or more symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) faced double the risk of ovarian cancer than women who were symptom-free.
Scientists think stress – especially in its chronic form – may accelerate ovarian tumour growth, leading to larger and more invasive tumors.
Ovarian cancer is the deadliest gynecologic condition and is notoriously hard to spot.
Women who have six or more symptoms of PTSD may face twice the risk of ovarian cancer over the course of their lives, new Harvard University research suggests (file)
Study co-author Professor Laura Kubzansky, of Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health said: ‘Ovarian cancer has been called a ‘silent killer’ because it is difficult to detect in its early stages.
‘Therefore, identifying more specifically who may be at increased risk for developing the disease is important for prevention or earlier treatment.’
Academics found the link between PTSD and ovarian cancer still held for more aggressive forms of the condition and decades after women experience a traumatic event.
Ongoing PTSD symptoms include being easily startled by ordinary noises or avoiding reminders of the harrowing event.
To better understand the link between the two conditions, researchers analysed data from the US’s Nurses’ Health Study II, which tracked the health of tens of thousands of women between 1989 and 2015 through biennial questionnaires and medical records.
Participants were asked whether they had suffered ovarian cancer and their responses were validated in medical records.
In the 2008 version of the US’s Nurses’ Health Study II, almost 55,000 participants were asked to note the ‘most’ traumatic events they had suffered, the associated symptoms and when they happened.
They were also asked about seven PTSD symptoms they may have experienced related to the most stressful event.
Based on the responses, women were split into six groups based on their exposure to trauma and the quantity of related PTSD symptoms suffered.
The researchers found that women who experienced six to seven symptoms associated with PTSD were at a significantly higher risk of ovarian cancer than women who had never been traumatized.
Women in this category also faced the same high risk of the most common and aggressive form of ovarian cancer, the ‘high-grade serous histotype.’
The research accounted for various factors associated with ovarian cancer, including oral contraceptive use and smoking.
Study co-author Dr Andrea Roberts, research scientist at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, said: ‘In light of these findings, we need to understand whether successful treatment of PTSD would reduce this risk, and whether other types of stress are also risk factors for ovarian cancer.’
Ovarian cancer currently has relatively few known risk factors.
The study’s researchers hope by examining PTSD and other forms of distress, like depression, they may have identified a ‘novel direction’ for preventing ovarian cancer.
Dr Andrea Roberts added: ‘If confirmed in other populations, this could be one factor that doctors could consider when determining if a woman is at high risk of ovarian cancer in the future.’
The findings were published in the journal Cancer Research
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