Ovarian cancer is the fifth most common cancer among women, excluding non-melanoma skin cancers. The American Cancer Society estimates that about 25,580 new cases of ovarian cancer will be diagnosed in the United States during 2004. Ovarian cancer accounts for 4% of all cancers in women.
A woman's risk of getting ovarian cancer during her lifetime is 1.7% or about 1 in 58. Her lifetime chance of dying from ovarian cancer is 1.0% or 1 in 98. The risk of developing and dying from ovarian cancer is higher for white women than black women.
The good news is that the ovarian cancer incidence rate has decreased since 1991. The incidence rate is a precise way for scientists to describe how common or rare a disease is. The ovarian cancer incidence rate is defined as the number of new cases diagnosed each year per 100,000 women.
Ovarian cancer ranks fourth in cancer deaths among women, accounting for more deaths than any other cancer of the female reproductive system. It is estimated that there will be about 16,090 deaths from ovarian cancer in the United States during 2004.
About 78% of women with ovarian cancer survive 1 year after diagnosis, and more than 50% survive longer than 5 years after diagnosis. If diagnosed and treated while the cancer has not spread outside the ovary, the 5-year survival rate is 90-95%. However, only 29% of all ovarian cancers are found at this early stage.
