Oncologists define three main types of tumors based on the type of cells that tumor originates from: epithelium, germ cell, or stroma. Ovarian Cancer is often thought of as a single disease however, it is composed of several related, but distinct, tumor categories. In these cases, 5-year survival rate is only 27 %. Most women, approximately 63 %, are diagnosed at stage 3 or higher. If diagnosed at stage 1, the 5-year survival rate is about 93 % however, only 15 % of all cases are detected at this stage, and usually only incidentally during another medical procedure. Unfortunately, most cases are diagnosed in late stages of disease, which explains the poor survival rate. Approximately 88 % of Ovarian Cancer cases present in women 45 years of age and older, with a median age of diagnosis of 63 years. This article will describe currently available Ovarian Cancer serum markers and clinical evidence supporting their use. In general, tumor marker applications range from screening and monitoring therapy response or recurrence to selecting treatment and predicting prognosis. Today, only a limited number of tumor markers for Ovarian Cancer have been cleared by the US Food and Drug Administration. Unlike breast cancer in which great strides have been made in detecting early-stage disease and saving lives, many women die of Ovarian Cancer because early stages have no obvious symptoms and no screening tests have proven to be effective. Disease is the leading cause of death from gynecological cancers, as well as the fifth-leading cause of cancer deaths in women. The American Cancer Society estimates that 22 280 new cases and 15 500 deaths from Ovarian Cancer will occur in the US in 2012.
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