What happens in ovarian cancer?
When your body’s cells are healthy, they grow and divide to make new cells as your body needs them. When old cells die, the new ones take their place. But sometimes this process breaks down. Too many new cells are made and not enough old cells die. All of these cells can stick together to make a lump called a tumour. • If a tumour is malignant, this means it is cancerous and can spread to other parts of the body. • If a tumour is benign, this means it is not cancerous and it won’t spread to other parts of the body. If a tumour is cancerous, this means it can invade and destroy the surrounding tissue. A non-cancerous tumour may grow bigger, but it will not spread to other parts of the body. Most ovarian cancers start on the outside of your ovary. Only about 1 in 20 start inside your ovary. How does it spread? One way that ovarian cancer spreads is when some cancer cells break away from the ovary and travel to nearby organs such as your womb, bladder and bowels. If this happens, new spot