What happens next?

Following diagnosis - usually reached by blood tests for CA125 levels and ultrasound scans (transvaginal and/or CT scan) - a surgeon will review your suitability for surgery. Some surgeons believe that surgery first is always the best option, while others feel that chemotherapy followed by surgery offers better results. If this is the case, your surgery will usually be scheduled for about halfway through your course of chemotherapy.

The aim of the surgery will be to remove as much of the tumour as possible. In most cases the surgeon will perform a hysterectomy (removal of the womb) and a salpingo-oophrectomy (removal of the ovaries and Fallopian tubes). The surgeon will also take samples of tissue from around your abdomen, to find out whether the disease has spread and see what stage your cancer is at.

Once doctors have assessed what stage your cancer is at they will advise you on further treatment. The treatment of choice is usually chemotherapy, unless you have a stage 1a tumour. In this case, surgery alone is usually sufficient. Radiotherapy is occasionally used for ovarian cancer where the tumour is bulky. It can help reduce the size of the tumour as well as treating any symptoms.