Though they may be indicative of other illnesses, if any of these symptoms persist for more than 12 days a month or daily for two or three weeks, or if the symptoms are new or unusual for you, start suddenly, or the pains feel different from menstrual or digestive problems, it is highly recommended you see your doctor right away, preferably a gynecologist.

1. Abdominal or belly pain
2. Frequent bloating
3. Urinary urgency or frequency (feeling as if you have to urinate right away or feeling as if you have to urinate more than usual)
4. Discomfort in the pelvic area below your stomach and between your hip bones
5. Trouble eating or feeling full more quickly
6. Changes in the menstrual cycle or abnormal vaginal bleeding
7. Changes in bowel habits (constipation or diarrhea)
8. Pain with intercourse
9. Fatigue
10.  Shortness of breath

Other symptoms include indigestion, back pain, leg swelling and clothes suddenly not fitting. Listening to your body offers the best chance for catching this silent killer before it is too late.

Ovarian Cancer Risks

Because there is no recommended screening test for ovarian cancer, symptoms offer the earliest -- and only -- signs of possible cancer. But there are several known risk factors for this disease. One is that the more ovulations a woman has had over her lifetime, i.e., early menstruation, the higher her risk of ovarian cancer, especially if that woman hasn’t had a child.

Family history accounts for about 10 percent of ovarian cancer cases. If a close relative such as a parent, sibling or child was diagnosed with ovarian cancer, there is a higher likelihood of cancer in that immediate family. Geneticists theorize that the same gene that is thought to cause breast and colon cancer also may be responsible for ovarian cancer. So a family history of these two cancers may point to an elevated risk of ovarian cancer. Increased age also increases the risk of cancer, especially those in their 50s and 60s.