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Risk Factors For Ovarian Cancer
Like any cancer, why one woman gets ovarian cancer and another does not remains unknown. However, research has shown that ovarian cancer occurs more frequently under the following conditions:
- History of ovarian cancer in your immediate family
- Age (over 50 years)
- No children (the greater the number of pregnancies, the lower the risk for developing ovarian cancer)
- Past history of breast cancer
- Race-ovarian cancer occurs 50% more frequently in white women than African American women.
- Jewish descent
- Hormone replacement therapy in post-menopausal women very slightly increases the risk for ovarian cancer
- Infertility drug use - a nearly 3-fold increase in risk was found, with a substantially greater risk in those who fail to conceive. (However, this is not a consistent finding and most of these "carcinomas" are borderline tumors.)
- High fat diet is associated with higher rates of ovarian cancer in industrialized nations, but the link remains unproven.
- Exposure to or use of talc or asbestos (industrial contamination), frequently used douches, condoms, dusting powder, feminine hygiene sprays or in sanitary napkins used in the genital area.
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