Treatment of Ovarian Cancer
oncologise wrote an interesting post today on
Here’s a quick excerpt
Surgery for Ovarian Cancer :
Surgery usually is required to treat ovarian cancer. Most patients undergo surgery in addition to another form of treatment (e.g., chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy). Surgery helps the physician to accurately stage the tumor, make a diagnosis, and perform debulking (removal of as much tumor mass as possible). Debulking surgery is especially important in ovarian cancer because aggressive removal of cancerous tissue is associated with improved survival. Patients with no residual tumor mass, or tumor masses that measure less than 1 cm, have the best opportunity for cure.
The surgeon usually performs a laparotomy (through an abdominal incision) or laparoscopy (using a tube containing a light and camera that is inserted into the pelvic cavity through a small incision). A sample of the tumor (called a frozen section) is examined immediately under a microscope to confirm ovarian cancer and rule out metastasis from another site. If the cancer […]
Read the rest of this great post here