Former tennis star Chris Evert says that her ovarian cancer has returned, marking her third bout with the disease, she wrote Thursday in an Instagram post. The retired player turned sports commentator, now 71, said that she will step back from professional tournaments and focus on her health while undergoing treatment for ovarian cancer.
Initially diagnosed in 2021, Evert has already received successful treatment for ovarian cancer twice. But CT and PET scans she received over the weekend showed that the cancer had returned, Evert wrote.
“I have already undergone surgery as the first step in my treatment and recovery, and will begin chemotherapy in the coming weeks,” she continued, adding that she will not attend Wimbledon or other work events “over the next few months” to focus on her health.
Evert described ovarian cancer as “relentless,” but added that she intends to “stay optimistic.”
“I am deeply grateful to my medical team, my family, friends, and everyone who has reached out with kindness and encouragement,” she wrote.
While having ovarian cancer three times may seem unusual, it’s not uncommon with this disease.
Evert, famous for earning 18 Grand Slam singles titles, learned in 2021 that she carried a mutation in her BRCA gene, a genetically inherited mutation that significantly increases the odds of developing breast and ovarian cancer. Evert was tested after her sister Jeanne died from ovarian cancer in 2020.
In December 2021, Evert had a preventative hysterectomy, which included the removal of her ovaries. But, during the procedure, surgeons found a tumor in one of her fallopian tubes. Evert was diagnosed with Stage 1C ovarian cancer. It means that while the tumor is confined to one or both ovaries or the fallopian tubes, some cancer cells have spread to just outside the organs.
“My doctors considered it a preventative surgery,” she told CBS Sunday Morning of her hysterectomy. “All of a sudden, five days later, I get a call from my doctor and he says, ‘Chrissy, I am in shock just as much as you’re going to be in shock. You had cancer in your fallopian tubes and in your ovaries. So, I’m sorry, but you’re going to have to go in for more surgery.'”
She also underwent chemotherapy to treat her cancer, as well as a preventative double mastectomy, because the BRCA gene mutation can also cause breast cancer. Evert announced she was in remission in 2023, but by December of the same year, her cancer was back.
“While this is a diagnosis I never wanted to hear, I once again feel fortunate that it was caught early,” she said in a statement via ESPN. “Based on a PET CT scan, I underwent another robotic surgery this past week. Doctors found cancer cells in the same pelvic region. All cells were removed, and I have begun another round of chemotherapy.”
With treatment, Evert’s cancer again went into remission the following year. In a June 2026 interview with People, Evert said that she gets scans every three months to see if her cancer has returned. “I have a moment like praying when I’m getting my CAT scan and you never know. You never know. You never know,” she said at the time.
What is ovarian cancer?
Ovarian cancer occurs when malignant cells form in the ovaries, the glands on either side of the uterus that produce and release eggs for reproduction, as well as the hormones estrogen and progesterone.
In 2026, the American Cancer Society estimates about 21,000 women will be diagnosed with ovarian cancer and roughly 12,450 will die from it — though the death rate has dropped 45% since 1976, largely due to better treatment.
A woman’s lifetime risk of developing ovarian cancer is about 1 in 91, with roughly half of all diagnoses occurring in women 63 or older. Women with a BRCA1 mutation have a 39% to 46% chance of developing ovarian cancer by age 70, and those with a BRCA2 mutation have a 10% to 27% chance — compared to just 2% for the average American.
Ovarian cancer is the deadliest of the gynecological cancers, and the relative five-year survival rate for ovarian cancer is 52% percent.
Why does ovarian cancer have a high risk of recurrence?
Dr. Laurie Brunette, a gynecologic oncologist at City of Hope Orange County in Irvine, Calif., tells Yahoo that one reason ovarian cancers may be more likely to recur is that they’re often diagnosed at a late stage to begin with. It’s hard to catch ovarian cancer early in part because the signs are subtle. Symptoms such as persistent abdominal bloating, pelvic discomfort, constipation or a need to urinate frequently can easily be mistaken for more common health issues, including gastrointestinal issues or urinary tract infections.
“We usually don’t catch it until it is Stage 3 or 4, and at that point it’s usually spread already around the abdomen and possibly other places in the body,” Brunette-Masi explains. “It does respond well to surgery and chemotherapy and other drugs we have, but just because it is diagnosed so late, there is that really high risk of [it] coming back.”
While stage 1 ovarian cancer is less likely to recur than later stages of the disease, Brunette-Masi says that if it comes back once, it’s likely to do so again. The cancer “might go undetectable for some time, but it almost always comes back, and comes back again after that.”
Roughly 70% of ovarian cancer patients will experience a recurrence, with risk varying widely by stage — from about 10% for Stage 1 up to 90%-95% for Stage 4, according to the Ovarian Cancer Research Alliance. If ovarian cancer returns after surgery to remove the affected ovary and other reproductive organs, it’s most likely to spread to the abdominal cavity next.
Dr. Amer Karam, a gynecologic surgeon and clinical professor at Stanford Medicine, tells Yahoo that people with the BRCA mutation tend to have longer intervals between recurrences than those without it.
What steps can people take to prevent ovarian cancer?
It’s hard to catch ovarian cancer early because there are few screening tests for the disease, and the ones that are available aren’t very accurate, Brunette says. There’s also a common misconception that Pap smears test for ovarian cancer, Karam says. However, while the test is useful for detecting cervical cancer or pre-cancer of the cervix, they don’t detect any other gynecologic cancer like uterine cancer or ovarian cancer.
Genetic screening can help identify those who are at higher risk for ovarian cancer. Although most people who develop ovarian cancer do not have BRCA mutations, these genetic changes significantly increase the risk of developing the disease. Testing for these mutations can help people who may be at an elevated risk — due to a family history of ovarian, breast and other cancers — determine whether to take further screening and preventative steps. While those who test positive for the mutation can potentially receive pelvic ultrasounds or certain blood tests to help screen for ovarian cancer, Brunette says that it is “controversial whether those screening tests should really be done, because they haven’t been found to catch the cancer any earlier or improve survival outcomes.”
Some women who test positive for the BRCA mutation elect to have their ovaries and fallopian tubes surgically removed, which is called a prophylactic oophorectomy. The operation can significantly lower the risk of both ovarian and breast cancers. However, removing both ovaries means that a person is unable to get pregnant, and it can also trigger early menopause, which comes with side effects such as mood changes and risks to bone and heart health.
Treatments for ovarian cancer often include surgery, as well as chemotherapy and radiation therapy.
In part because it’s often caught late, ovarian cancer is known for being difficult to treat and has historically had relatively high death rates. But treatments have come a long way in recent years, including newer targeted therapies for those with genetic mutations linked to ovarian cancer. Brunette notes that, for those with BRCA mutations, a class of drugs called PARP inhibitors may be used as maintenance therapy and have been shown to improve survival.
