Ovarian Cancer Aftercare

With the conclusion of your cancer treatment comes a bit of a letdown. As odd as it sounds, for a while now you most likely were caught up in a whirlwind of treatments and doctors' visits that ensued once a positive diagnosis for ovarian cancer was handed down and now that the course of treatment is coming to an end, there somehow seems to be a feeling that takes hold which appears to ask if there is not more that you should be doing.

Ovarian cancer aftercare fits neatly into this void that the sudden lack of doctors' appointments, tests, trials and other activities will leave in its wake. In the same way, the fear that your cancer will reappear is ever present and the ovarian cancer aftercare will be the bridge that once again puts you on the course of your life before the cancer hit, but with the assurance that someone is watching over you and making sure that the cancer will not rob you of that life.

Follow up appointments with your doctor may sound like routine meetings to you, but to her or him they are a time to check for cancer recurrence and to ensure that your body is getting back to normal. It is crucial that you do not skip any aftercare appointments, fail to follow through on check ups and tests, and now start to self medicate to prevent any cancer cells from growing and spreading once again.

In the same vein, the aftercare appointments you keep will also track the lasting effects the ovarian cancer treatments may have had on your bodily systems. To this end, your doctor will most likely check the following:

* Your vitals will be taken at every visit. This gives the doctor a good idea of any weight los or gain, sudden changes in blood pressure and heart rate, and if you present with a fever - which you might not even realize you have - there may be a course for concern if there is a chemotherapy induced infection.

* Blood work will most likely be at the forefront of the follow up care you receive with ovarian cancer and what is checked is the marker known as CA-125 which indicates the presence of tumors or cancer cell activity related to ovarian cancer.

* In some cases your physician may also decide to check your hormonal levels to stay abreast of any sudden changes.

Do not forego your after care simply because you move or change insurance carriers and suddenly your doctors are no longer accessible or affordable to you. Instead, carefully pick out a new physician and then bring a copy of the defining documents found in your chart that will help the new doctor pick up where the previous one left off. This usually refers to any lab results, reports, discharge summaries, and listings of any and all medications administered to you, whether orally or intravenously.

Since you are now in the mindset of fighting for you health, you will find that it is a good time to make some of the changes you always wanted to make, such as stopping your intake of alcohol, your over consumption of fats, and also engaging in a smoking cessation program. This has less to do with keeping the cancer from recurring and much more with setting up the rest of your life to be one that is defined by healthy choices.