Ovarian Cancer — Making Treatment Decisions

Generally speaking, the more a surgeon performs a surgery, the better their technique becomes. But something else to consider is how they've trained, where they've trained, and what skills they've gained during their training. When choosing an ovarian cancer surgeon, first and foremost, you want to make sure that your surgeon is trained in a program where they’ve been exposed to many cases, Dr. Dedmond says. The sheer number of cases they’ve handled is important, but so are the different types of patients they’ve taken care of and the different modalities of treatments they've usedmeaning robotic surgery, laparoscopic surgery, and traditional surgery.

Dr. Dedmond suggests some important questions to ask a prospective surgeon:

• How many cases like mine have you performed surgery on?
• What type of surgery are you planning for my procedure?
• Do you have training in the specific type of surgery–open versus laparoscopic, regular laparoscopic or robotic–that I need?

"Surgeons may have done 1,000 open ovarian cancer surgeries, but they may be just learning a new approach in robotic cancer surgery,” explains Dr. Dedmond.  “Or, they may have been a laparoscopic surgeon, but are not up to speed on the new tools of the robot. And there are different types of robots, as well," Dedmond notes. "Training on different models can be very different. So I think it’s appropriate to ask your surgeon what approach they’re going to use for your surgery and what experience they have with that approach."

As a patient, you can do some homework by compiling a list of potential surgeons, finding out who's covered by your insurance, and who has operating privileges at highly regarded hospitals or cancer centers in your area. Ask for recommendations from your primary care physician, oncologist, or other health care providers you see regularly, and from people who've had a similar procedure.

You can also do some research on your own into surgeons’ credentials and training. The Federation of State Medical Boards (FSMB) can tell you if a surgeon is licensed in your state.

State medical boards also have doctor profiles that include board certifications, board actions, criminal convictions, and medical malpractice claims.

To find out whether the surgeon is board certified or eligible in a particular specialty, check with the American Board of Medical Specialties. "Board certified" means a physician has undergone lengthy training in a specialty and passed a stringent exam.

Equally important to surgical skills is the confidence you have in your doctor. No matter how qualified your physician, you won't have a good experience if you aren't comfortable communicating your concerns or asking questions. Your doctor should have your complete trust so that when it’s time for your operation you have confidence that you are in good hands–literally.

What matters most, doctors would likely agree, is finding a surgeon who you believe is able to take the best care of you.

Learn more about SurvivorNet's rigorous medical review process.

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