Being diagnosed with cancer at a young age can be a shock. You may not know anyone else your age who has a cancer diagnosis and you might be feeling isolated.

Before now, you may not have had any experience of getting medical treatment for a complex condition like cancer. You might be worried about how your cancer could affect your daily life, work and relationships. These are all very common concerns.

Ovacome offers resources and support for younger people with ovarian cancer, listed below. You may also want to take a look at the personal stories section of our website, which includes the stories of younger people living with an ovarian cancer diagnosis.

.

Information and resources

A Younger Woman's Guide to Ovarian Cancer is a booklet written by four cancer charities: Ovacome, Ovarian Cancer Action, Target Ovarian Cancer and The Eve Appeal. It provides information on treatment, relationships, fertility and facing an early menopause after ovarian cancer treatment in your fertile years. The guide was written by health professionals and experts, and was developed through consultation with people who have had ovarian cancer. You can download the guide here.

If you were diagnosed with ovarian cancer before your natural menopause, then your treatment may cause you to go through surgical menopause. You can find out more about surgical menopause here.

You might be worried about how cancer will affect your sex life and intimate relationships. Our information on ovarian cancer and sexuality discusses the physical, emotional and social effects of cancer and provides helpful advice on ways that you can manage this. You can also watch our webinar discussions with sexual pleasure expert Sam Evans and psychosexual therapist Julia Pugh.

If you have questions about returning to work after a cancer diagnosis, you can download our helpful information booklet on this topic.

.

The Ovacome Under 45s Group

The Ovacome Under 45s Group is for anyone who was diagnosed with ovarian cancer before the age of 45 (you are welcome to join if you are now over this age). It is a virtual group, meaning that you can video call or phone in from anywhere. Once you have registered, you will be sent the dial-in instructions on the day of the meeting.

If you have difficulty with dialing-in, please do just let us know, and we will try to make alternative arrangements for you. 

We meet 5pm-6.30pm on the first Wednesday of the month.

Register here