In this episode of her in-depth epithelial ovarian cancer series, Dr. Barbara 'Menopause' Taylor tackles a question many women get wrong: Which family members actually affect your risk?

She breaks down the crucial difference between family history and hereditary genetic mutations—and explains why they are not the same thing. You’ll learn which relatives truly matter (hint: it’s both maternal and paternal sides), why first-degree relatives carry the greatest weight, and how even one close family member with ovarian cancer raises your risk by about 5% above the already low average risk of 1.4%.

Dr. Taylor cuts through the confusion, clarifies common mix-ups with breast cancer risk, and shows you why the details—yes, even the nitty gritty—matter when assessing your personal risk.

If you’ve ever wondered how your family tree shapes your health future, this episode connects the dots with precision and clarity.

Visual learner? Find the corresponding Menopause Taylor YouTube video here.

Click here for more about one-on-one consultations and Dr. Taylor's menopause resources.

Looking for a roadmap to successful menopause management? Dr. Taylor's new ebook, How to Win at Menopause: A Guide to Raising - and Winning- Your Game Your Way, will bring confidence and clarity to your menopause journey. Avoid common pitfalls and learn to navigate a healthcare system that focuses more on disease than prevention, where many professionals lack the relevant education and/or the motivation to help you.

In this episode, Dr. Barbara 'Menopause' Taylor continues her in-depth series on epithelial ovarian cancer by focusing on one powerful risk factor: your personal medical history.

She explains why a prior diagnosis of ovarian cancer, breast cancer, or even endometriosis can increase your future risk, and how shared genetic mutations like BRCA1 and BRCA2 connect breast and ovarian cancers. Dr. Taylor also touches on the concept that “once a cancer patient, always a cancer patient,” highlighting how a history of cancer can signal an ongoing vulnerability.

This episode helps you understand how your past medical story shapes your future risk—and why knowing your history is one of the most empowering steps you can take.

Visual learner? Find the corresponding Menopause Taylor YouTube video here.

Click here for more about one-on-one consultations and Dr. Taylor's menopause resources.

Looking for a roadmap to successful menopause management? Dr. Taylor's new ebook, How to Win at Menopause: A Guide to Raising - and Winning- Your Game Your Way, will bring confidence and clarity to your menopause journey. Avoid common pitfalls and learn to navigate a healthcare system that focuses more on disease than prevention, where many professionals lack the relevant education and/or the motivation to help you.

Genetic Mutations for Epithelial Ovarian Cancer — Beyond BRCA

In the ovarian cancer series, we’ve just separated hereditary from non-hereditary cancers. Now we dive into the specific genetic mutations that drive hereditary epithelial ovarian cancer.

Most women only know about BRCA—but that’s just part of the story. In this episode, Dr. Barbara 'Menopause' Taylor organizes hereditary epithelial ovarian cancers into three site-specific syndromes: ovaries and breasts (HBOC), ovaries only (HSSOC), and ovaries with colon (Lynch Syndrome). You’ll learn that BRCA mutations account for 65–85% of hereditary epithelial ovarian cancers, that hereditary cancers often strike before age 50, and that while hereditary cancers make up only 5–10% of all ovarian cancers, their risks can be dramatically higher—up to 40–66% for breast cancer and 11–54% for ovarian cancer in BRCA carriers.

Clear, structured, and eye-opening, this episode reveals why knowing your specific mutation matters—and why comparing one woman’s cancer to another’s is a mistake.

Visual learner? Find the corresponding Menopause Taylor YouTube video here.

Click here for more about one-on-one consultations and Dr. Taylor's menopause resources.

Looking for a roadmap to successful menopause management? Dr. Taylor's new ebook, How to Win at Menopause: A Guide to Raising - and Winning- Your Game Your Way, will bring confidence and clarity to your menopause journey. Avoid common pitfalls and learn to navigate a healthcare system that focuses more on disease than prevention, where many professionals lack the relevant education and/or the motivation to help you.

In the ovarian cancer series, we’ve covered anatomy, cell types, and an overview of risk factors—now it’s time to tackle one of the biggest myths of all.

Most women assume ovarian cancer is inherited. The truth? 90–95% of ovarian cancers are not hereditary. In this episode, Dr. Barbara 'Menopause' Taylor breaks down the critical differences between hereditary and non-hereditary ovarian cancers—when they start, how they develop, who’s at risk, and why prevention and screening look completely different for each. From genetics and age of onset to testing, inheritance, and prevention strategies, this episode reshapes how you think about risk.

Visual learner? Find the corresponding Menopause Taylor YouTube video here.

Click here for more about one-on-one consultations and Dr. Taylor's menopause resources.

Looking for a roadmap to successful menopause management? Dr. Taylor's new ebook, How to Win at Menopause: A Guide to Raising - and Winning- Your Game Your Way, will bring confidence and clarity to your menopause journey. Avoid common pitfalls and learn to navigate a healthcare system that focuses more on disease than prevention, where many professionals lack the relevant education and/or the motivation to help you.

Ovarian Cancer Risk Factors

Think ovarian cancer risk is all about your genes or family history? Think again. In this overview, Dr. Barbara 'Menopause' Taylor introduces the various categories of risk factors and the limitations on the research from which they are drawn. From genetics and personal history to hormones, lifestyle, inflammation, and even stress, this episode lays out the full landscape so you can see the big picture. It’s the roadmap that sets up everything that follows—so you can understand where the risks lie and where you can take action to reduce them.

Visual learner? Find the corresponding Menopause Taylor YouTube video here.

Click here for more about one-on-one consultations and Dr. Taylor's menopause resources.

Looking for a roadmap to successful menopause management? Dr. Taylor's new ebook, How to Win at Menopause: A Guide to Raising - and Winning- Your Game Your Way, will bring confidence and clarity to your menopause journey. Avoid common pitfalls and learn to navigate a healthcare system that focuses more on disease than prevention, where many professionals lack the relevant education and/or the motivation to help you.

Serious Statistics for Serous Ovarian Cancer

Serous epithelial ovarian cancer isn’t common—but it is devastating. In this sobering yet essential episode, Dr. Barbara 'Menopause' Taylor explains why this cancer earns its frightening reputation, breaking down the statistics that matter most: how rare it is, and how deadly it is. Clear, factual, and impossible to ignore, this episode is the wake-up call that sets the stage for understanding risk, detection, and prevention in the rest of the ovarian cancer series.

Visual learner? Find the corresponding Menopause Taylor YouTube video here.

Click here for more about one-on-one consultations and Dr. Taylor's menopause resources.

Looking for a roadmap to successful menopause management? Dr. Taylor's new ebook, How to Win at Menopause: A Guide to Raising - and Winning- Your Game Your Way, will bring confidence and clarity to your menopause journey. Avoid common pitfalls and learn to navigate a healthcare system that focuses more on disease than prevention, where many professionals lack the relevant education and/or the motivation to help you.

In this episode, Dr. Barbara 'Menopause' Taylor lays the final the groundwork for this ovarian cancer unit. After previous episodes covered ovarian anatomy, cell types, and normal vs. abnormal swelling, Menopause Taylor now delves into the most common type of ovarian cancers, epithelial ovarian cancers. She explains the different kinds of epithelial ovarian cancers and why serous epithelial ovarian cancer is the most common and most deadly. This episode sets the focus for everything that follows and gives you the framework you need to really understand ovarian cancer from here on out.

Visual learner? Find the corresponding Menopause Taylor YouTube video here.

Click here for more about one-on-one consultations and Dr. Taylor's menopause resources.

Looking for a roadmap to successful menopause management? Dr. Taylor's new ebook, How to Win at Menopause: A Guide to Raising - and Winning- Your Game Your Way, will bring confidence and clarity to your menopause journey. Avoid common pitfalls and learn to navigate a healthcare system that focuses more on disease than prevention, where many professionals lack the relevant education and/or the motivation to help you.

One Ovary, Three Cells, 63 Cancers — Why Ovarian Cancer Is Never “Just One Thing”

Most people think ovarian cancer is a single disease. It’s not even close. In this eye-opening episode, Dr. Barbara 'Menopause' Taylor reveals how the three different ovarian cell types can give rise to dozens of distinct cancers, each with its own behavior and risk. You’ll get quizzed on the source of the most common and deadliest ovarian cancer, and learn why comparing ovarian cancers is a dangerous mistake. This is the first episode in the Ovarian Cancer unit to starts to dig into the details of the disease.

Visual learner? Find the corresponding Menopause Taylor YouTube video here.

Click here for more about one-on-one consultations and Dr. Taylor's menopause resources.

Looking for a roadmap to successful menopause management? Dr. Taylor's new ebook, How to Win at Menopause: A Guide to Raising - and Winning- Your Game Your Way, will bring confidence and clarity to your menopause journey. Avoid common pitfalls and learn to navigate a healthcare system that focuses more on disease than prevention, where many professionals lack the relevant education and/or the motivation to help you.