The American Cancer Society, estimates that as many as 22,400 women in the United States will be diagnosed with ovarian cancer this year and of that number around 15,200 will die from the disease.
According to researchers it has been found that postmenopausal women who adhere to a low-fat diet for at least eight years can reduce their risk of developing ovarian cancer by 40%.
Ovarian cancer usually occurs in women over the age of 50, but it can also affect younger women; it is not known what causes ovarian cancer but the disease is hard to detect in the early stages.
The earlier ovarian cancer is detected and treated, the better the chance for recovery, but often women with ovarian cancer have no symptoms or only mild symptoms until the disease is in an advanced stage and hard to treat.
Symptoms may include a heavy feeling in the pelvis, pain in lower abdomen, bleeding from the vagina, weight gain or loss, abnormal periods, unexplained back pain that gets worse, gas, nausea, vomiting, or loss of appetite.
Treatment usually involves surgery followed by chemotherapy.
In a study led by Dr.Ross Prentice of the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, a large group of women women age 50 to 79, took part in a randomized, controlled dietary modification trial of chemoprevention.
The study was part of the Women's Health Initiative and for it 19,541 women followed a diet with no more than 20% of energy from fat, at least five servings of fruit and vegetables a day, and at least six servings of grains daily, while the other 29,294 women (the control group) followed their usual diet.
The diet group attended 18 group sessions with nutritionists in the first year and then received quarterly maintenance sessions to help them reach dietary goals.
The sessions included information on the fat content of food, fat budgeting, high-risk food situations, and other nutritional topics as well as dietary self-monitoring, social influences on eating, and relapse prevention.