Ovarian cysts are a common development in many women. Cysts are sacs filled with fluid which are formed in the female ovaries. Most cysts are harmless and do not even show any symptoms. However, some cysts do show outward symptoms like heavy bleeding, clotting, nausea, vomiting, stomach pain during the menstrual cycle, and pain during sex.

If you feel any of the above-mentioned discomforts, it will be in your best interest to book an appointment with your gynaecologist and get a check-up done. Most cysts are manageable unless they are very severe. In fact, it is best that cysts come to light at the right time and are efficiently managed, unless they develop into severe issues in the future.

Management of cysts

Oftentimes, medical practitioners resort to what is called  watchful waiting .
At times, ovarian cysts disappear in a few months.
It is recommended to take a blood test and an ultrasound to see the progress of the cyst.
If you have already experienced menopause, then these tests are carried out every four months. This is because in such cases the risk of an ovarian cancer is at its highest and regular monitoring of the cyst is necessary.
Treatment of cysts
Ovarian cysts can be treated in their earlier stages. Here are some of the most popular treatments.

Laparoscopy is one of the most popular treatments. It is a surgery carried out under general anaesthesia. The tummy is cut to a radius of a key hole and a laparoscope is inserted. This helps the doctor to see the internal organs, which is then used to remove the cyst. This method is less painful and has a quick recovery time.
Laparotomy is the other method used for removing a cyst. In case the cyst is large, then one single large hole is made in the body to access the cyst. At times, the cyst and the ovaries are removed and sent for further laboratory inspection. This inspection is done to detect whether the samples are cancerous or not. This procedure is more complex than the previous one and might need the patient to stay in the hospital for a few days.
In case you have a cancerous cyst, then your reproductive part itself would have to be removed rendering you barren for your life.
Ovarian cyst is very much treatable and is best to be detected at an earlier stage for better and faster treatment. Thus, it is best to go for regular check-ups and report in case of any disturbing symptoms.

Ovarian Cysts - 3 Ways They Can Be Treated!

How to ensure a normal period when you're suffering from PCOS?

Polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) is a hormonal disorder affecting 12-18% of women of reproductive age. PCOS is a condition where at least two of the following conditions occur:

1. Appearance of acne, excessive hair on your body

2. Irregular delayed periods

3. The presence of 10 to 12 small cysts in the ovaries.

You do not ovulate each month, and some women do not ovulate at all if they are suffering from PCOS. This is because although the ovaries of women, suffering from PCOS, usually have many follicles, they do not develop fully and so ovulation often does not occur. If you do not ovulate, you may not have periods.

So what can you do to have normal periods?

Although some women with PCOS have regular periods, high levels of androgen and also the hormone insulin, can disrupt the monthly cycle of ovulation and menstruation. If you have PCOS, your periods may be irregular or may stop altogether. The average menstrual cycle is 28 days with one ovulation, but anywhere between 21 and 35 days is considered normal, and for a woman suffering from PCOS, this cycle can take as much as 3 months to complete.

To ensure a normal period during PCOS, your doctor can prescribe hormonal contraception. The medication can also reduce menstrual cramps, acne, and excess hair growth. The estrogen and progesterone in hormonal contraception act to override the body's normal hormonal control of menstrual cycle and ovulation. Production of hormones such as testosterone is greatly reduced by the oral contraceptive pill. Some oral contraceptive pills not only aim to block the effects of testosterone but also increase insulin resistance.

By allowing the regular shedding of the uterus lining during menstruation, the pill can reduce the risk of developing endometrial cancer while ensuring you get normal periods.

Note: it is important that you closely watch your weight. Lifestyle changes and weight reduction help a lot when you are suffering from PCOS.

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Related Tip: How Not to Miss Your Workout During Your PERIOD

How to Ensure a Normal Period When You're Suffering from PCOS?

Ovarian Cancer, as the name suggests, is a cancer that affects the ovaries. It leads to the abnormal growth of cells, which eventually spreads over to other parts of a woman s body, such as the stomach, uterus and vagina. The risk of ovarian cancer is greater in women who have experienced the process of ovulation many times in their lifetime. It also includes those women who attain menopause at a much later stage in their lives or those who start ovulation at an early age. The different types of tumors, which develop in ovarian cells are more often than not, benign or non-cancerous and do not spread beyond the ovaries. 

Therefore, they can be easily treated by either removing a part or the whole of the ovary. But malign tumors have the ability to spread to other parts of the body and can prove to be fatal.

What are the causes of ovarian cancer

1. Family History: If someone in your close relation like mother, sister or daughter has developed ovarian cancer, then the risk of becoming susceptible to the disease also increases. If any of your close relatives have developed the disease earlier at a young age, then it s quite likely that it was due to some inherited faulty gene. BCRA1 and BCRA2 are known to be the faulty genes that are connected to ovarian cancer.

2. Age: You become more susceptible to developing ovarian cancer at a postmenopausal stage.

3. Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT): Women who go for hormone replacement therapy put themselves at a greater risk of developing the disease. Nevertheless, if you stop undergoing the sessions of HRT, your risk of suffering from this fatal condition eventually decreases.

4. Obesity/overweight: This is also one of the important factors behind the increased risks of developing ovarian cancer. So, the more obese you are, greater is the risk involved.

What are the symptoms associated with ovarian cancer?

1. Symptoms at an initial stage include pelvic or abdominal pain, postmenopausal vaginal bleeding or irregular menstruation.

2. Loss of appetite or feeling full quickly

3. Other typical symptoms are diarrhea, constipation, nausea or changes in bowel movements.

4. Feeling of mass pressure at your lower back or pelvis

Treatment available for it

Treatment for ovarian cancer generally consists of a combination of surgery and chemotherapy:

1. Surgery: Treatment usually entails removal of the ovaries, uterus and fallopian tubes, including the surrounding lymph nodes as well as the fatty abdominal tissue, which often gets affected with ovarian cancer. This surgery may help you to retain the ability to conceive.

2. Chemotherapy: Chemotherapy is a procedure that follows a surgery and is performed to destroy the remaining cancer cells, if any. Chemotherapy drugs are either inserted into your vein or directly into the abdominal cavity and if need be, into both.

Ovarian Cancer - Are you at a risk?

Polycystic ovary syndrome (pcos) and infertility are considered synonymous by most. However, the truth is that they are not and there are a lot of treatment options that can lead to pregnancy, even in a lady who is suffering from pcos.

Reasons pcos leads to infertility
Women with pcos have different hormonal pathways than a normal woman without pcos. It changes the system of how your body produces the eggs and prepares your uterus for pregnancy. Three reasons why women with pcos do not get pregnant or why it is difficult for them to maintain pregnancy are:
1. Women who are suffering with pcos do not ovulate normally.
2. They have irregular periods and thus their monthly cycles are not predictable.
3. As they have irregular periods, their endometrium may not be prepared when the egg is released. Thus, it does not help in sustaining the pregnancy.

Symptoms of pcos
There are a lot of symptoms that show the hormonal imbalance due to pcos.
1. Ovarian cysts
2. Excessive amounts of male hormones
3. High levels of insulin
4. Fertility problems
5. Weight gain
6. Ovulation and menstrual problems
7. Excess body and facial hair
8. Acne
9. Anxiety and depression

As there is hormonal imbalance in a woman with pcos, the eggs may not develop properly and at the same time, they may not be ready to get fertilized, thus leading to infertility.

Pcos infertility treatment
The good news is that even if you are one of them with pcos, there are treatments that can help you to get pregnant.

Here are the drugs that help patients with pcos.

Metformin (glucophage)
It helps in reducing the insulin levels and stabilizes the hormones. Thus, doctors often prescribe metformin that will help in making the ovulation cycles regular.

Clomid (clomiphene citrate)
Another fertility drug that helps in conceiving is clomid. It may be prescribed with or without metformin. When women with pcos take these two drugs together, their chances of getting treated for pcos and getting fertile become more. Many women may need a high dose of clomid so that they can retain fertility.

Gonadotropins
This medication is necessary for helping you with ovulation as gonadotropins are hormones that stimulate your ovaries to release eggs. When someone is not responding to clomid then this medication may be tried.
If you too are trying to conceive and yet have not succeeded and can find the symptoms mentioned above, visit your doctor and start the treatment.

How to Get Pregnant Even if You Have Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS)?

Ovarian cancer takes place when the cells in either of your ovaries have an abnormal growth. The ovaries are two small organs, situated on either side of your uterus. They deliver female sex hormones and store and discharge eggs (ova) that help a woman reproduce. Ovarian cancer is a serious disease that emerges from various sorts of cells and growths inside the ovary.

Specialists do not know precisely what causes ovarian cancer. Hereditary qualities, for example and other DNA changes, are a danger element for few ladies. Around 10 out of 100 ovarian cancers are thought to be brought about by quality transformations in the BRCA1 or BRCA2 genes. Women who go through changes due to these carrier genes are more at risk of contracting ovarian cancer.

The earliest symptoms of ovarian cancer are as follows

    Frequent bloating in the uterus or stomach area.
    Pain in your pelvis or belly.
    Inconvenience while eating, or feeling full quickly.
    Urinary issues, for example, a critical need to urinate or urinating more frequently than expected.


Treatment options for ovarian cancer

The decision of treatment and the long-term result for ladies who have ovarian cancer relies upon the sort and phase of cancer they are in. Your age, general wellbeing, personal satisfaction, and wish to get pregnant should be considered. The primary treatment methods for ovarian cancer are:

    Surgery to see whether you have cancer or not and to treat it. This may include taking an ultrasound and biopsies to check for the spread of cancer.
    Chemotherapy, which uses medications to kill the cancerous cells. It is suggested after surgery for most phases of ovarian cancer.
    Women who are in a more progressive stage of ovarian cancer may have a portion of their chemotherapy before surgery and whatever is left of it after surgery. This can make the surgery more secure for these women.
    Radiation treatment might be utilized to pulverize the cancer cells with the help of high-measurement X-ray beams or other high-vitality beams.

Side Effects of Treatment Methods:

Most medications for ovarian cancer cause reactions. They may vary, depending upon the kind of treatment, your age and general well-being. Reactions of surgery rely on the degree of your surgery and spread of the disease. In case your specialist removes your ovaries, you lose the capacity to bear children or get pregnant. Furthermore, in case you were all the while bleeding before your surgery, you will begin with your menopause.

Symptoms of chemotherapy may incorporate loss of appetite and weight, queasiness, fatigue, vomiting, nausea and hair loss. There is also a possibility of getting a very serious infection. One should get regular or annual check-ups done to see if there are anomalies in either parts of the bodies since natural symptoms of cancer are only visible after a certain stage. 

Ovarian Cancer - 4 Highly Effective Treatment Options Available

Polycystic ovarian syndrome or PCOS is a condition in which a woman experiences fluctuation of hormone levels, estrogen, and progesterone which causes cysts in her ovaries, dysfunctional menstrual cycle, cardiac problem, fertility and changes in appearance. Hormones are chemical messengers that can trigger a number of issues in the body. Long term problems due to PCOS can be avoided with an early diagnosis and a proper treatment.

Causes
- Genetics and hormonal imbalance have been identified as the main causes of PCOS although the exact reason has not been discovered.
- Overproduction of androgen, a male hormone in a woman can cause small lumps in the ovaries, irregular development of eggs and abnormal insulin level.

Symptoms
The severity of the symptoms depends on the constitution of the person but the most common one is irregular periods. PCOS occurs when there is a decrease in sex hormones which can lead to the development of certain male features like:

- Deeper voice
- Growth of hair on face, toes, stomach, chest and back
- Reduction in breast size
- Loss and thinning of hair

There are other symptoms as well which can help one to determine the syndrome including:
- Oily skin leading to acne
- Irregular egg formation causing fertility problems and miscarriages
- Depression, anxiety and mood swings
- Hyperinsulinemia, that refers to the presence of too much insulin in the body which can cause obesity
- Difficulty in breathing while sleeping

The severity of the symptoms varies but if you are experiencing any of these problems, it is advisable to seek a professional consultation. A healthy lifestyle, regular exercise, nutritious diets are some of the preventive measures you can take. There are hormone regulating medicines and treatments that attempt to curb the condition but there is no permanent cure.

What is Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome?

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