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House of Assembly - Fifty-First Parliament, Second Session (51-2)
2008-04-03 Daily Xml
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OVARIAN CANCER

The Hon. R.B. SUCH (Fisher) (11:58): I move:

That this house calls on the state and federal governments to increase awareness of ovarian cancer and its symptoms and to provide increased research into this insidious disease.

I have been passionate for a long time about men's health, but I am passionate about women's health, too. I believe we have a role as MPs to try to improve the quality of life of all of our citizens. This particular cancer (ovarian cancer) is an insidious disease, as I indicated in the motion, and can affect any of our female friends and relatives.

We know only too well through the sad case of Jeannie Ferris that it can have very sad consequences. Many of us would have known Jeannie through her work here and elsewhere. I do not want to see this cancer take the life of any woman at any age, because it is a terrible affliction to have.

I will put before the house some key factors about ovarian cancer. Ovarian cancer is the eighth most common cancer diagnosed in women in Australia. The present life expectancy of Australian women is 83 years, and one in 67 women will be diagnosed with ovarian cancer before the age of 85. In Australia, in 2002, a total of 1,273 women were diagnosed with ovarian cancer, and it is projected that there will now be 1,465 new cases and, by 2011, that will increase to 1,645.

When we talk about statistics, it sounds rather cold. We are talking here about women; we are talking about living, breathing human beings, so statistics do not always convey the human aspect. The age standardised incidence rate of ovarian cancer remained stable at about 12 to 13 new cases per 100,000 females from 1983 to 2002. One good aspect—not that there is any good news about having ovarian cancer—is that its incidence has not significantly changed in the past 15 years or so.

The risk of ovarian cancer increases with age, a bit like prostate cancer in men, and about 80 per cent of all new cases of ovarian cancer diagnosed in 2002 were in women 50 years of age or older. The median age of first diagnosis is 64. I just make the point that people used to say that prostate cancer is an old man's disease. I had it nearly three years ago, and I do not consider myself to be all that old. When I saw my specialist this week for a check-up, he said that he operated on a relatively young person of 37 last week to remove his prostate because it was riddled with cancer.

In the case of ovarian cancer, women need to be wary of those who say that it can happen only when you get older—that is a word that women do not like to hear, anyway. I think women need to be careful of people who say, 'Don't worry about it because you're young.' Well, you do not want to worry about it; you want to do something about it; and likewise for men with prostate cancer.

Ovarian cancer is the sixth most common cause of cancer death in Australian women. I think that point has been made. One good thing is that the survival rate for women with ovarian cancer has improved from 34.3 per cent in 1982-86 to 42.1 per cent in 1998-2002, so that is a very positive step forward, but still far too many women are getting ovarian cancer.

One of the reasons for raising this issue here—as I have done with men's health—is to promote awareness. Information supplied to me by the National Breast and Ovarian Cancer Centre a few weeks ago regarding a survey conducted of 2,000 women revealed that 60 per cent of those women believed—and this would reflect the wider community, if the study was done properly, and I am sure it was—that a Pap smear gives an indication of ovarian cancer. That is not the case; a Pap smear is designed to detect cervical cancer. But here we have a study showing that 60 per cent of women think that if they have a Pap smear it will pick up any warning signs of ovarian cancer. Dr Helen Zorbas, the Director of the National Breast and Ovarian Cancer Centre, said:

Without a screening test for ovarian cancer, it is vital that women are aware of its symptoms.

At this stage, we do not have a very satisfactory screening test for ovarian cancer. There is no reliable screening method. What can be done is a blood test which detects proteins, called CA125, found in the blood of women with advanced ovarian cancer. The problem with that test is that the levels of that protein can be elevated for reasons which do not reflect cancer.

Likewise, an ultrasound can be used but it may pick up things which are not necessarily cancerous. So, as a detection for ovarian cancer, that is also limited. The big issue with ovarian cancer is that it is often picked up at a late stage. As someone who has had cancer and who has gotten rid of it early, I think the message is to detect it early and deal with it early if you can.

Researchers are working on tests to provide a more prompt and definitive early diagnosis of ovarian cancer but, because ovarian cancer is silent until it is quite advanced, it is important that women are aware of the potential symptoms. I guess the caution here is the same as it is for medical students (who, when they start reading their books believe they have every illness under the sun), and that is that having one or other of these symptoms does not necessarily mean someone has ovarian cancer. However, awareness levels of symptoms are very low. I quote from information provided by the National Breast and Ovarian Cancer Centre:

only about one third of women surveyed correctly identified feeling full or bloated as a symptom;

less than one quarter of women correctly identified putting on weight around the middle as a symptom;

less than one in 10 women knew indigestion can be a symptom of ovarian cancer; and

one in five women could not name any symptoms of ovarian cancer.

So, there is a big job ahead in terms of awareness.

These are the symptoms of ovarian cancer that women need to be aware of and need to look out for:

abdominal bloating;

abdominal or back pain;

appetite loss or feeling full;

changes in toilet habits;

unexplained weight gain or loss;

indigestion or heartburn; and

fatigue.

As Dr Zorbas from the centre points out, every woman will have experienced one or more of these symptoms at some stage but, if any of them are unusual or if they persist, it is important to see a doctor. She also makes the point that 'no one knows your body like you do'.

Sometimes when you go to your doctor (and it is the same for men) you have to be very persistent because, essentially, doctors are a bit like detectives and they are not perfect. If there is any doubt on the part of (in this case) the woman, she should not hesitate to insist on being referred to a specialist in the area, a gynaecological oncologist. In relation to breast cancer, for example, I know one woman who went to a doctor who told her that she had a muscle problem; sadly, that woman's cancer has now spread. Sometimes one has to be persistent and insist upon a specialist opinion if you have the range of symptoms. However, as I said, it is also important that people not immediately assume that just because they have indigestion they have ovarian cancer—but it is one of the indicators that people—women, in particular—need to be aware of.

I think the purpose of this motion is self-evident. I want to ensure that women have quality of life and that they are not subjected to this silent killer (as it is often called), that they are aware of it, and that they use their newsletters—and I do not believe that members should make any apology for using their newsletters in this way—to alert constituents to health issues.

Some people are a bit coy about this. Down the street yesterday someone said to me, 'How's your problem?' I did not know what he was talking about, and jokingly said to my wife Lyn, 'How does he know about you?' No; that was just a joke. He meant prostate cancer, but people are very coy about these things and he should have said, 'How are you going with your prostate cancer? ' I could then have said, 'Fine, I have just had my fourth clearance.'

Many men are reluctant to have a medical check-up for prostate cancer. If you have a relative who has had prostate cancer and if you are over 40 you should have a check-up. If you are 50, even if you have not had a relative who has had it, you should get a check-up. Likewise women, with regard to a pap smear: I know some women—I will not name them but they live in my street—who have said, 'We'll worry about these things when we get them.' Well, it is often too late. Some of these women have said to me, 'We're not going to have a pap smear; we'll worry about that if it happens.; As I said earlier, that relates to cervical cancer, and it does not tell you much, if anything, about ovarian cancer.

People are often their own worst enemies. As I stated in this house months ago in relation to breast cancer, only 63 per cent of women in the target age group are actually having a mammogram. I do not know what you have to do to people to try to help them protect themselves, but having any sort of cancer is not something that anyone would want, and certainly I do not want to see people suffer, whether it involve men or women.

I commend this motion to the house. I think it is very important that there has been a lot of emphasis on breast cancer. I have had a close relative who has been diagnosed and treated and is fine now, and that is great but let us not overlook these other insidious cancers, including ovarian cancer, cervical cancer and, in men, prostate cancer. There is the wider issue of general health, including a lot of other things such as diabetes, blood pressure and so on that we need to be mindful of.

I commend this motion to the house and, if it helps save the life of one woman, then it is worthwhile. I would like to see ovarian cancer eliminated altogether—that would be the ideal—but at least if it can reduce the tragic loss of life, the bill will be worth while. The life of Jeannie Ferris, who would otherwise have had a lot of years left that she could enjoy, sadly was cut down far too early. I commend this motion to the house.

Debate adjourned on motion of Ms Simmons.

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