Cancer is a deadly disease all over the world, with very little known about curing it completely. One type of cancer that affects many women around the world is ovarian cancer. It has now become the fifth leading cause of death in cancer patients and leads the charts under all the gynaecological cancer deaths. Women of all demographics, races and ethnicities show risk factors for developing ovarian cancer. After one has been diagnosed with ovarian cancer, the first response is to affirm the ovarian cancer survival rates and life expectancy. These rates differ from patient to patient, but some common factors are the age, family history of disease and early diagnoses of the cancer.

As the age of a woman increases, so do the chances of her having ovarian cancer. Very few women below the age of 40 are seen to suffer from this, but it is not a complete rarity. However, ovarian cancer survival rates are much higher in young women that the elderly. Women under the age of 20 show the highest survival rates, with close to 99% of the women recovering fully from it. This changes almost minimally for women under the age of 30 with death rates climbing to 0.8%. With early screening of cancer, death rates decline rapidly and most women go on to live completely healthy lives. After the age of 35, with the onset of other gynaecological problems and lower chances of pregnancy, the survival rates take a slight dip; going down to some 96.8% and even lower if the cancer has advanced to stage III or IV.

Once women cross the age of 45 years, ovarian cancer survival rates decrease even further, going down to 85%. Life expectancy at this point is not very high and can be further complicated if breast cancer develops at the same time. Once women hit their sixties, the life expectancy goes down to some five to six years, after remission. If the patient is healthy and active at the time of diagnoses, then this can be extended to 12 to 15 years, but no more. If diagnosed in the final stages of its spread, then ovarian cancer survival rates can be very low. At this point, chemotherapy and radiation therapy are seen to be the best options for treatment.

After the age of 65 years and above, the rates drop straight to 75% and life expectancy is down to 1 year to 2 after the diagnoses. Proper treatment may provide relief but for very long. Very few women suffer from ovarian cancer after the age of 80 but those who do display longer survival rates but can suffer from detoriated health due to other illnesses and conditions. Long term therapy is advised for such patients, since surgery can be a futile risk to take. As with all diseases, proper therapy and early diagnoses can increase survival rates and life expectancy after that. One must always go in for regular health screenings and check ups to diagnose cancer of any kind at an early stage and cure it.