For most women in Florida, the thought of being diagnosed with gynecological cancer is scary. However, it is important to know that cancers that develop in a woman’s reproductive organs are rare, and most can be easily treated if they are caught at an early stage. Once a gynecological cancer is identified, it is important for a woman to be treated by a specialist, as general gynecologists and obstetricians are not trained to treat cancer.
The most common type of gynecological cancer is endometrial cancer which develops in the uterus lining. Most women with this type of cancer will show physical symptoms that cause them to visit the doctor, such as abnormal bleeding. About 80 to 90 percent of women with endometrial cancer have a good outcome because the cancer is usually detected early.
Though it is rare, the most deadly form of gynecological cancer is ovarian cancer. If ovarian cancer is caught at an early stage, it can be cured about 95 percent of the time. However, 70 percent of ovarian cancer cases are diagnosed at advanced stages. Cervical cancer, which used to be the leading cause of death in U.S. women, is now extremely rare because lesions can be identified during screenings and treated before they become cancerous. Another form of gynecological cancer called vulvar cancer typically affects elderly women and is very rare.
Even if a woman has regular screenings, a misdiagnosis could result in a gynecological cancer developing to an advanced stage. A woman who has been diagnosed with an advanced stage gynecological cancer because of a prior misdiagnosis may want to talk to an attorney about filing a medical malpractice claim.
