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| Shop loyalty card data may help spot ovarian cancer | Shop loyalty card data may help spot ovarian cancer |
| (about 9 hours later) | |
| Tracking what shoppers buy, via loyalty-card data, can help spot those with early signs of cancer, doctors who have been running a study say. | Tracking what shoppers buy, via loyalty-card data, can help spot those with early signs of cancer, doctors who have been running a study say. |
| Frequent purchases of over-the-counter painkillers and indigestion tablets revealed a higher risk of ovarian cancer, they found. | Frequent purchases of over-the-counter painkillers and indigestion tablets revealed a higher risk of ovarian cancer, they found. |
| Ovarian cancer is often diagnosed late. | Ovarian cancer is often diagnosed late. |
| There is no reliable screening test and the symptoms, such as bloating, can be vague and confused with other common, harmless conditions. | There is no reliable screening test and the symptoms, such as bloating, can be vague and confused with other common, harmless conditions. |
| Symptoms include: | Symptoms include: |
| swollen or bloated stomach | swollen or bloated stomach |
| indigestion | indigestion |
| pelvic or abdominal pain | pelvic or abdominal pain |
| loss of appetite or feeling full quickly after eating | loss of appetite or feeling full quickly after eating |
| needing to urinate more often | needing to urinate more often |
| Early diagnosis improves the chance of successful treatment. | Early diagnosis improves the chance of successful treatment. |
| Fiona's story | Fiona's story |
| Fiona Murphy was 25 when she was diagnosed and treated for a rare type of ovarian cancer. | Fiona Murphy was 25 when she was diagnosed and treated for a rare type of ovarian cancer. |
| She had been having stomach cramps and indigestion for a couple of years, which other doctors had repeatedly thought might be irritable-bowel syndrome. | She had been having stomach cramps and indigestion for a couple of years, which other doctors had repeatedly thought might be irritable-bowel syndrome. |
| She told BBC News: "I lived on Gaviscon for months and months before my ovarian cancer diagnosis. It went everywhere with me. I couldn't leave the house without it. | She told BBC News: "I lived on Gaviscon for months and months before my ovarian cancer diagnosis. It went everywhere with me. I couldn't leave the house without it. |
| "My symptoms were vague but they were frequent and continuous. That's what you need to be looking for." | "My symptoms were vague but they were frequent and continuous. That's what you need to be looking for." |
| Her symptoms continued and a scan revealed a large mass or growth. | Her symptoms continued and a scan revealed a large mass or growth. |
| Now 39, Fiona has been helping the team at Imperial College London with their research. | Now 39, Fiona has been helping the team at Imperial College London with their research. |
| "I wanted to help with developing this study because I had the wrong diagnosis for nearly two years," she said. | "I wanted to help with developing this study because I had the wrong diagnosis for nearly two years," she said. |
| "If there is a way to get an earlier diagnosis, I want to help people who are in the same position I was in. | "If there is a way to get an earlier diagnosis, I want to help people who are in the same position I was in. |
| "Getting diagnosed early is vital. Had my cancer been spotted sooner, I might have had far less surgeries and better fertility options." | "Getting diagnosed early is vital. Had my cancer been spotted sooner, I might have had far less surgeries and better fertility options." |
| What's my risk of ovarian cancer? | What's my risk of ovarian cancer? |
| Smear test could check risk for other cancers | Smear test could check risk for other cancers |
| Dr James Flanagan, lead author of the Cancer Research UK-funded work, said: "The cancer symptoms we are looking for are very common - but for some women, they could be the first signs of something more serious. | Dr James Flanagan, lead author of the Cancer Research UK-funded work, said: "The cancer symptoms we are looking for are very common - but for some women, they could be the first signs of something more serious. |
| "Using shopping data, our study found a noticeable increase in purchases of pain and indigestion medications among women with ovarian cancer, up to eight months before diagnosis, compared with women without ovarian cancer. | "Using shopping data, our study found a noticeable increase in purchases of pain and indigestion medications among women with ovarian cancer, up to eight months before diagnosis, compared with women without ovarian cancer. |
| "This suggests that long before women have recognised their symptoms as alarming enough to go to the GP, they may be treating them at home." | "This suggests that long before women have recognised their symptoms as alarming enough to go to the GP, they may be treating them at home." |
| The researchers worked with two big High Street retailers and 283 female customers, who agreed to share their shopping data going back over six years. | The researchers worked with two big High Street retailers and 283 female customers, who agreed to share their shopping data going back over six years. |
| More than half had been diagnosed with ovarian cancer. | More than half had been diagnosed with ovarian cancer. |
| More research is needed to confirm the findings. The team now plans to test if shopping data can help spot other cancers too - such as stomach, liver and bladder cancer. | More research is needed to confirm the findings. The team now plans to test if shopping data can help spot other cancers too - such as stomach, liver and bladder cancer. |
| The latest work is published in the journal JMIR Public Health and Surveillance. | The latest work is published in the journal JMIR Public Health and Surveillance. |
| Related Topics | Related Topics |
| Ovarian cancer | Ovarian cancer |
| Cancer | Cancer |