Colleagues,
This morning we received a story about the CA-125 test for ovarian cancer.  The story was disturbing because it suggested that an easy test that could have detected the illness was not administered.  There is no way for us to know the medical facts from the story, but I wanted to be sure that the community was aware of the normal methods for detecting ovarian cancer. 
Ovarian cancer is more commonly diagnosed by a pelvic examination, sometimes with the addition of an ultrasound.  There is more information at the Mayo Clinic site.
http://www.mayoclinic.com/invoke.cfm?objectid=EF55BD38-2667-4900-ACA0A74BD6F570D1&section=6

The cancer antigen(CA)125 test is typically used to test for the recurrance of Ovarian Cancer and is not regularly used for screening.  The concern, as with the earlier versions of prostate screening, was that the test is not reliable; a high score did not mean you had the cancer and a low score was not always an indication of no disease.  For more information there is a useful description on the Mayo Clinic website.
http://www.mayoclinic.com/invoke.cfm?objectid=A8C71D2D-D06B-4948-A68238AD2D1FC622

Early detection of ovarian cancer is best acheived by regular yearly examinations by an Ob-gyn.
Rich
Rich Metzger, Ph.D.
Professor
Department of Psychology
CB# 2803
350 Holt Hall
615 McCallie Ave
Chattanooga, TN 37403
Phone: 423-425-5321