Her interview on AM prompted many viewers to contact the show, sharing their difficulties with the health system.
“There is something incredibly wrong with this health system,” one viewer emailed.
They explained a friend told their doctor for two years that something was wrong, but they didn’t believe her.
“She requested scans, and they gave her scans but not the ones she requested.
“Three weeks ago, she was taken to hospital by ambulance. . . with stage four ovarian cancer.”
Another viewer shared: “I have been asking and asking for an MRI through specialists and doctors after all other scans, have all these symptoms and am being pushed back on…. this is both frustrating and very concerning.”
“It’s safe to say ovarian cancer is definitely hugely underfunded and resourced across the world, but particularly in New Zealand,” Crosby said.
“I think a big barrier to women getting diagnosed early is that we don’t have any clinical guidelines in New Zealand.
“For example, with breast cancer here, if you present with a lump, your GP sort of has a pathway to follow. Whereas ovarian cancer, we don’t have any guidelines like that. And so that pathway to diagnosis varies depending on the practitioner or region really.”
Crosby said women could not rely on cervical smear tests to detect the disease.
“Cervical screening does not check for any of the gynaecological cancers, it only checks for changes to the cervix.”
She said although learning the symptoms of the disease was crucial, it was also important to speak up when seeing a GP.
“It’s really about knowing the signs and being able to advocate for yourself at the doctor’s office.”
New medicine a ‘huge step forward’
A newly funded medicine is now available for Kiwi women in the advanced stages of the disease, which Crosby said is a ‘huge step forward’.
Niraparib (branded as Zejula), was funded for the maintenance treatment of ovarian cancer from May 1 2024.
Crosby said 70 percent of people with ovarian cancer have a recurrence and while the medicine wasn’t a miracle cure, it was “incredible” to have another treatment option.