An Ohio’s mother is opening about being diagnosed with ovarian cancer after initially thinking that she had a sinus infection.
In January, Jessica Gilbert, a mother of two children from the Cincinnati area, Ohio, was preparing for a family trip to Disney World, a Christmas gift for her 11 -year -old girl and 7 years old, when she began to feel symptoms similar to flu.
“I woke up with a fever, and thought it was a sinus infection because I had a load loaded all week,” Gilbert told ABC News. “I decided to go to my doctor (primary care) to obtain Covid, Flu, (Y) RSV tests, and they all became negative.”
Jessica Gilbert, a mother of two children, said she wants to share her experience in ovarian cancer to create more awareness about this type of cancer.
Courtesy Jessica Gilbert
The 42 -year -old said he felt “outside” and thought that if it was not a sinus infection, he could have low iron levels. She said she asked to take the test, and her doctor ordered blood analysis.
After a couple of days, Gilbert said he began to feel a little better and told his doctor that he was still planning to go to Florida, but to his surprise, he said that his doctor ordered him to go to the emergency room and get more tests.
Gilbert said it was in the emergency room where another doctor gave him the news, saying: “I think you have ovary cancer.”
“The whole world stopped,” Gilbert recalled. “I was totally surprised.
Jessica Gilbert, 42, was diagnosed with ovarian cancer in January 2025. Gilbert is photographed with her partner, Harry Kershaw IV.
Courtesy Jessica Gilbert
Gilbert said he wanted to share his personal history to raise awareness about ovarian cancer, especially because September is the month of awareness of ovarian cancer.
“I don’t want this for my daughter or my mother. I don’t want this to anyone else,” Gilbert said. “I don’t want you to find out in the emergency room … because I feel there must be something else that can be done, just so that we can change the results of people.”
Ovary cancer, according to the National Cancer InstituteIt refers to the cancer that develops in the tissues of the ovaries, the reproductive organs responsible for multiple functions, including the production of eggs and hormones.
Jessica Gilbert and her partner, Harry Kershaw IV, are two -year -old parents: Mia, 11, Harry V. The family is in the photo with their maximum overload dog, or Max, to abbreviate.
Courtesy Jessica Gilbert
Ovary cancer is relatively rare, however, the National Cancer Institute He points out that approximately 243,000 women in the US lived with the diagnosis in the estimates of 2022.
This year, estimates project almost 21,000 new ovarian cancer diagnoses, and cases “often advance to diagnosis,” according to the agency.
It is estimated that the five -year survival rate for people with ovarian cancer is 51%, and it is estimated that more than 12,000 die of this type of cancer in 2025.
The symptoms of ovarian cancer may vary, but according to the Centers for Disease Control and PreventionThey can include bleeding or vaginal discharge of the vagina, pain or pressure in the pelvic area, abdominal or back pain, swelling, feeling full too fast, difficulty eating, constipation or a frequent or urgent need to urinate.
Dr. Caroline Billingsley, an oncologist gynecologist at the University of Cincinnati Cancer Center and one of Gilbert’s doctors, treats patients with ovarian cancer, endometrium cancer, cervical cancer and other types of cancer.
Billingsley told ABC News that many do not know about ovarian cancer as they could about other types of cancers, such as breast cancer or lung cancer, and consciousness and support for clinical trials can help people who live with these diseases a lot.
“I feel that many people do not talk about cancers below the women’s belt, so women do not know any of the signs or symptoms, because they are simply not aware of them,” said Billingsley. “And ovarian cancer is really cunning. It is a cancer that does not have one thing that is very easy to say: ‘Oh, this is definitely ovarian cancer.’ And it is very slow initially, in terms of the symptoms, but then grows very fast inside.”
Doctors treat ovary cancer In several ways, even with surgery, chemotherapy, directed therapy, radiation and immunotherapy.
Jessica Gilbert is receiving treatment for ovarian cancer at the UC Medical Center in Ohio.
Courtesy Jessica Gilbert
Gilbert said he underwent multiple cycles of chemotherapy and surgery and is currently in maintenance therapy with medications.
Despite all the immense challenges he has had this year, Gilbert said he claims to stay hope and prioritize what is important for her.
“(I) I just tried to be in the present and enjoy life. I went to the roller coaster with my son a couple of weeks ago … and that meant the world for me,” Gilbert said. “I missed some things, but I was still in my daughter’s dance recital during chemotherapy with my mask on, so that I could be there for her.”
Speaking to others who also live with the disease, he added: “Take care, but go out and continue living your life.”
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