{"id":602178,"date":"2026-09-16T13:42:33","date_gmt":"2026-09-16T13:42:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/602178\/"},"modified":"2026-09-16T13:42:33","modified_gmt":"2026-09-16T13:42:33","slug":"woman-had-1-sudden-ovarian-cancer-symptom-before-diagnosis-at-47","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/602178\/","title":{"rendered":"Woman Had 1 Sudden Ovarian Cancer Symptom Before Diagnosis At 47"},"content":{"rendered":"

Cathy Brockhoff thought she had very bad indigestion when she woke up early one morning with a stomachache.<\/p>\n

She took a few antacid tablets, but the ache progressed from major discomfort to so much pain that it hurt to lie down. Brockhoff woke up her husband and told him she needed to go to the hospital. Something was very wrong.<\/p>\n

She suspected a gallbladder problem or pancreatitis, but after multiple tests and imaging, a sonogram detected a mass on her ovary. At just 47, she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer \u2014 a disease that usually strikes women in their 60s.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis literally came out of the blue. \u2026 It was very crazy,\u201d Brockhoff, a teacher\u2019s assistant who lives in Coram, New York, tells TODAY.com.<\/p>\n

\u201cI still process it when someone says to me, \u2018ovarian cancer.\u2019 Like it still makes your stomach drop, even though it\u2019s three years later. Because I\u2019m still like, wow, that\u2019s me. That\u2019s still surreal.\u201d<\/p>\n

Most ovarian cancers develop after menopause, the American Cancer Society notes<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"CathyCathy Brockhoff in the hospital after her ovarian cancer diagnosis.Courtesy Cathy Brockhoff<\/p>\n

But it can strike before then, says Dr. Antoinette Sakaris, a gynecologic oncologist at Northwell South Shore University Hospital\u00a0in New York. She treated Brockhoff and calls her diagnosis \u201cdefinitely on the younger side.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s why her story is actually quite important to bring to the public,\u201d Sakaris tells TODAY.com.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo that women hopefully can be more in tune with looking for subtle symptoms of ovarian cancer.\u201d<\/p>\n

Brockhoff\u2019s sudden and severe stomachache in 2023 wasn\u2019t a typical warning sign, but it was actually \u201cfortunate\u201d because it triggered the ER visit that led to imaging that found the tumor, the doctor adds. <\/p>\n

Ovarian cancer symptoms are often much more vague, allowing the cancer to grow and spread undetected \u2014 a big reason why it\u2019s the most lethal gynecologic cancer, researchers note<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Most Cases Are Random<\/p>\n

Ovarian cancer is rare \u2014 about 1% of women in the general population will be diagnosed during their lifetime, according to the National Cancer Institute<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Brockhoff says ovarian cancer was \u201ccompletely off the radar\u201d for her. No one in her family has had it, and genetic tests after her diagnosis found she didn\u2019t have genetic mutations that can significantly raise the risk of the disease.<\/p>\n

Like 75% of patients, Brockhoff\u2019s case was \u201ca random event,\u201d Sakaris says.<\/p>\n

Risk factors include older age, a family history of the disease and having a harmful genetic mutation. Up to 58% of women who inherit a BRCA1 mutation and up to 29% of women who have a BRCA2 mutation will develop ovarian cancer, according to the National Cancer Institute<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"BrockhoffBrockhoff wears a shirt marking World Ovarian Cancer Day. September marks Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month.Courtesy Cathy Brockhoff<\/p>\n

Never being pregnant can also raise the risk because \u201cunrelenting ovulation\u201d is a risk factor, Sakaris notes. Pregnancy and birth control pills are protective<\/a> against ovarian cancer because they reduce the number of ovulations a woman has in her lifetime.<\/p>\n

Still, most women who are diagnosed are not at high risk, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention notes<\/a>.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s no screening \u2014 like a mammogram for breast cancer \u2014 or blood test available for the general population, so it\u2019s key for women to know and report the symptoms to their doctor.<\/p>\n

Ovarian Cancer Symptoms<\/p>\n

When it comes to warning signs, think of the acronym BEAT, which stands for bloating, early satiety, abdominal pain and toilet changes, Sakaris advises:<\/p>\n

Bloating<\/p>\n

Feeling like your pants are too tight and noticing the abdomen getting larger is one of the main symptoms a doctor monitors in her own body<\/a>.<\/p>\n

It happens when excess fluid, called ascites, builds up in the belly, causing it to swell, the American Cancer Society notes. <\/p>\n

Since bloating is very common, it\u2019s the persistence of it that matters, Sakaris says. Watch for bloating that doesn\u2019t go away with a bowel movement and continues for weeks.<\/p>\n

\u201cImagine looking like you\u2019re four or five months pregnant, but you\u2019re not,\u201d she notes. <\/p>\n

\u201cWe tell women, \u2018If for two weeks or more, you\u2019re having a persistent daily bloating or fullness in the abdomen that\u2019s not going away, bring it to your physician\u2019s attention.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Early Satiety<\/p>\n

This means feeling full quickly after eating and may happen because a tumor or fluid buildup in the belly limits how much food the stomach can hold.<\/p>\n

\u201cI often tell patients, \u2018If you had your most favorite beverage and food in front of you from your favorite restaurant or cafe, you are getting ready to eat it, and you can\u2019t eat beyond a few bites and you feel very full with or without nausea, that\u2019s worrisome,\u2019\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf there\u2019s a mass \u2026 that can slow down the transit of our gut, and so everything feels like it\u2019s backing up on you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"BrockhoffBrockhoff shaved her head while undergoing chemotherapy.Courtesy Cathy BrockhoffAbdominal Pain<\/p>\n

Brockhoff says this was the only symptom she experienced. <\/p>\n

Her sudden stomachache is less common and was likely caused when the ovarian cancer tumor grew, then bled into itself and pushed on nearby organs, Sakaris says.<\/p>\n

But most women describe a gradual, progressive onset of abdominal pain over a month or two, she adds.<\/p>\n

Toilet Changes<\/p>\n

This includes bowel and bladder changes such as frequent urination, narrow stools and feeling like the bowels don\u2019t fully empty.<\/p>\n

It happens because the bladder can\u2019t hold as much urine as it normally would if there\u2019s a tumor taking up space in the pelvis. Similarly, a mass could press on the rectum or the colon and cause constipation.<\/p>\n

If you always drink a lot of water and are used to going to the bathroom frequently, notice any changes from baseline, Sakaris advises.<\/p>\n

In a \u2018Good Place\u2019 After Treatment<\/p>\n

After being diagnosed with Stage 3 ovarian cancer, Brockhoff underwent surgery to remove the tumor, her uterus and her ovaries, plus a portion of her colon that was near the mass as a precaution.<\/p>\n

\"Brockhoff,Brockhoff, left, and her family.Courtesy Cathy Brockhoff<\/p>\n

She then had six rounds of chemotherapy, followed by targeted therapy drugs. October marks three years since scans showed no evidence of disease. Brockhoff feels lucky she had a warning sign she couldn\u2019t ignore and says she\u2019s in a \u201cgood place\u201d thanks to her family\u2019s support.<\/p>\n

She urges women to pay attention to their body, and not ignore symptoms.<\/p>\n

\u201cWorking and raising kids, we don\u2019t always take the time out to realize, \u2018I\u2019ve had this stomach ache for four days,\u2019\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel like we constantly make excuses or push things (off) because we\u2019re always going forward in another direction. We have to stop doing that.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Cathy Brockhoff thought she had very bad indigestion when she woke up early one morning with a stomachache.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":602179,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[134,111,139,69],"class_list":["post-602178","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-health","tag-health","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nz"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/602178","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=602178"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/602178\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/602179"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=602178"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=602178"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=602178"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}