Outing a silent killer

By NATHAN LAMB | Milton Independent Staff Writer
miltonreporter@yahoo.com

When Eileen O’Regan Wheeler’s mother passed away five years ago, she bequeathed two major legacies to her daughter.

One was a collection of poems, which where eventually compiled into a small hardcover book printed for family and friends.

The other is a streak of activism when it comes to raising awareness about ovarian cancer, which took Theresa O'Regan’s life  less than two weeks after she was diagnosed with the disease in December of 2002.

That advocacy peaks each September during ovarian cancer month. Wheeler, who works at the Milton Elementary School registrar’s office, marks the occasion by  reaching out to colleagues and distributing information about the disease. This fall is no exception.

 “My intent is to send out little cards to all the staff members with reminders of the symptoms and to advise that they advocate for themselves or family members if they’re experiencing those symptoms,” she said.

Theresa O'Regan (photo, left) was the inspiration for her daughter Eileen O'Regan Wheeler's annual campaign to raise awareness of the symptom's of ovarian cancer.

To date she’s helped one co-worker, who thought nothing was wrong, then discovered she had the disease.

Such awareness is key; the National Ovarian Cancer Coalition lists survival rates at over 90 percent for patients diagnosed in early stages.  However, lack of specific symptoms and easy tests make it so only 19 percent of cases are caught early. In those cases, survival rates are lower than 30 percent.

Though Ovarian Cancer is often called the “silent killer” there are signs of its advance. Bloating, abdominal pain, difficulty eating, and urinary symptoms, are key indicators cited by the doctor-run Gynecological Cancer Foundation,

There’s also a list of non-specific symptoms that includes fatigue, indigestion, back pain, painful intercourse, constipation, menstrual irregularities, and even—in cases that have spread through the abdomen-- acid reflux.

The problem is that all of the above are virtually identical to more innocuous intestinal disorders, explained Dr. Emmanuel Soultanakis of Fletcher Allen Health Care.

“All of those can be symptoms of ovarian cancer, the problem is they’re also symptoms most of us get all the time,” he said.

In the case of Wheeler’s mother, she had battled colitis (an inflammation of the colon) and attributed her ongoing symptoms to there. That assumption ended on Dec. 11, 2002, when Eileen got a call from her mother, who was vomiting and felt sick.    

It was the next morning doctors found a stage four tumor, the largest and worst type. Wheeler’s mother died 11 days later, leaving the daughter to only guess what would have happened with an earlier diagnosis.

Afterwards, Wheeler noticed her mother had an ultrasound test scheduled for the following month. She had likely suspected something was wrong, but didn’t think it was urgent. Now Wheeler is advising people to think otherwise.

“I think advocating for yourself if you’re not feeling well…that’s the biggest thing,” she said.

While a blood test can indicate ovarian cancer, Dr. Soultanakis said physical exams, ultrasounds, and imaging tests are the most reliable tools for diagnosis of the disease.

Overall, he said there is no quick and easy diagnosis for those feeling symptoms, but instead a multi-phased screening process of evaluating risk factors and the patient’s condition.

High risk factors include family history of ovarian cancer or breast cancer, age (the disease is most common in menopausal women), and having an Ashkenazi Jewish background.

In terms of condition, Soultanakis said the three main criteria are A) new symptoms that are B) severe and C) persistent for more than a couple weeks.

“If they have two out of three of those they should bring it to the attention to their doctor,” he said.

Ovarian cancer will also be a topic at a free cancer care and detection event presented jointly by Fletcher Allen Health Care and the University of Vermont on Saturday Sept. 29.

The event, which will run from 8-10:30 a.m. at the Sheraton Hotel and Conference Center in South Burlington, includes a lecture on Ovarian Cancer.

As for Wheeler, she plans to continue her efforts to raise awareness about ovarian cancer for the foreseeable future, in her mother’s memory

“She was just too important of a lady in my life to not do anything about it,” she said.