In some cases, ovarian cancer may be prevented in women who are at a high risk for the disease by removing the ovaries.
Once ovarian cancer has developed, the best chance for successful treatment and a cure occurs when ovarian cancer is caught in its earliest stage. Unfortunately, more than half of all women with ovarian cancer will die of the disease.
Treatment of ovarian cancer is aggressive and involves surgical removal of both ovaries, the fallopian tubes, and the uterus. In addition, any lymph nodes and abdominal tissue to which ovarian cancer has spread will also be removed surgically. The chance for a cure of ovarian cancer is best when this surgery is performed by a specialist called a gynecologic oncologist.
Chemotherapy is generally prescribed to kill any remaining cancer cells and prevent the reappearance of ovarian cancer. Chemotherapy is also used to slow the growth of ovarian cancer that has spread to other parts of the body. Radiation therapy may also be done.
Treatment also includes regular medical follow-up visits to monitor treatment, progress, side effects of treatment and the potential for recurrences of ovarian cancer. Tests used to monitor progress and possible recurrences include the CA-125 test and CT and PET scan.
The list of treatments mentioned in various sources for Ovarian Cancer includes the following list. Always seek professional medical advice about any treatment or change in treatment plans.
Alternative treatments or home remedies that have been listed as possibly helpful for Ovarian Cancer may include:
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Some of the different medications used in the treatment of Ovarian Cancer include:
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After the initial diagnosis has been established at surgery, additional therapy will depend on several factors, including the histologic cell type, the stage, the extent of spread of the cancer; and the residual tumor remaining at the end of the initial surgery.
Treatment includes chemotherapy (usually a combination of drugs), or radiation. Other treatment options may include immunotherapy, or in the future, gene therapy. (Source: excerpt from Ovarian Cancer: NWHIC)
Treatment depends on a number of factors, including the stage of the disease and the general health of the patient. Patients are often treated by a team of specialists. The team may include a gynecologist , a gynecologic oncologist , a medical oncologist , and/or a radiation oncologist . Many different treatments and combinations of treatments are used to treat ovarian cancer.
Surgery is the usual initial treatment for women diagnosed with ovarian cancer. The ovaries, the fallopian tubes, the uterus, and the cervix are usually removed. This operation is called a hysterectomy with bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy . Often, the surgeon also removes the omentum (the thin tissue covering the stomach and large intestine) and lymph nodes (small organs located along the channels of the lymphatic system) in the abdomen.
Staging during surgery (to find out whether the cancer has spread) generally involves removing lymph nodes, samples of tissue from the diaphragm and other organs in the abdomen, and fluid from the abdomen. If the cancer has spread, the surgeon usually removes as much of the cancer as possible in a procedure called tumor debulking . Tumor debulking reduces the amount of cancer that will have to be treated later with chemotherapy or radiation therapy.
Chemotherapy is the use of drugs to kill cancer cells. Chemotherapy may be given to destroy any cancerous cells that may remain in the body after surgery, to control tumor growth, or to relieve symptoms of the disease.
Most drugs used to treat ovarian cancer are given by injection into a vein (intravenously, or IV ). The drugs can be injected directly into a vein or given through a catheter , a thin tube. The catheter is placed into a large vein and remains there as long as it is needed. Some anticancer drugs are taken by mouth. Whether they are given intravenously or by mouth, the drugs enter the bloodstream and circulate throughout the body.
Another way to give chemotherapy is to put the drug directly into the abdomen through a catheter. With this method, called intraperitoneal chemotherapy , most of the drug remains in the abdomen.
After chemotherapy is completed, second-look surgery may be performed to examine the abdomen directly. The surgeon may remove fluid and tissue samples to see whether the anticancer drugs have been successful.
Radiation therapy , also called radiotherapy, involves the use of high-energy rays to kill cancer cells. Radiation therapy affects the cancer cells only in the treated area. The radiation may come from a machine (external radiation ). Some women receive a treatment called intraperitoneal radiation therapy in which radioactive liquid is put directly into the abdomen through a catheter.
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