In an article published by Everyday Health, “Coping With the Emotional Challenges of Platinum-Resistant Ovarian Cancer” (June 10, 2026), Ovarian Cancer Research Alliance (OCRA) community member Amanda Widro shares her experience navigating a platinum-resistant ovarian cancer diagnosis. Ovarian cancer is considered platinum-resistant when it recurs within six months of finishing platinum-based chemotherapy.
Widro, who was diagnosed with stage 3C ovarian cancer in 2023 at age 45, experienced a recurrence just six weeks after finishing platinum-based chemotherapy. Describing the moment she learned the news, she told Everyday Health:
I felt like I was in this whirlwind of everything that was going on.
The article highlights how she found comfort by leaning into peer support and connecting with online communities where people share experiences, side effects, and coping tips.
How to Cope When Ovarian Cancer Becomes Platinum-Resistant
The article shares coping strategies and insights from experts and patients, for people living with platinum-resistant ovarian cancer.
- Pausing to process the situation. Experts note that fear, frustration, and despair can be common first reactions, and that these feelings don’t mean a patient has “given up.”
- Managing emotional fatigue through pacing and what one expert calls “energy budgeting” — allocating limited energy to what matters most.
- Recognizing signs of depression and anxiety and knowing when to loop in your care team for a referral to a psychologist or psychiatrist.
- Building a support system that draws on oncology nurse navigators, social workers, therapists, and loved ones, rather than on one person alone.
- Setting boundaries around draining conversations.
- Staying informed about newer treatment options, including recently approved therapies and ongoing clinical trials.
Ovarian & Gynecologic Cancer Support Resources Available Through OCRA
If you or someone you love is navigating a platinum-resistant diagnosis or any gynecologic cancer, you don’t have to face it alone. OCRA offers free support and education for patients, survivors, and loved ones.
- Staying Current: Treatment for Platinum Resistant/Refractory Recurrent Ovarian Cancer provides the latest information on treatment options, from the current standard of care to new therapies being investigated in clinical trials.
- Woman to Woman Peer Support Program connects gynecologic cancer patients, survivors and loved ones with trained Mentors who have gone through a similar experience and can share insights and perspective.
- Staying Connected Support Series provides online support, connection and community, plus opportunities for self-expression and creativity, facilitated by OCRA’s oncology social workers.
- Steps 1:1 Counseling offers professional counseling for anyone facing a gynecologic cancer diagnosis.
- Clinical Trial Navigator helps patients find trials in the U.S. and Canada tailored to diagnosis, treatment history, and location.
- Patient Support Line is available Monday through Friday.
Explore a full library of programs and resources on our Support & Resources page.
Read the full Everyday Health article: Coping With the Emotional Challenges of Platinum-Resistant Ovarian Cancer, written by Maggie Aime, MSN, RN, and medically reviewed by Tawee Tanvetyanon, MD, MPH.
