Ovarian Cancer Treatment Options
- The typical first treatment for ovarian cancer is a combination of surgery and chemotherapy
- Most women will undergo surgery first followed by chemotherapy
- However, chemo will be recommended first in certain situations where doctors believe it’s needed to improve surgical outcomes
“We know that chemotherapy is a very important element [of treatment]. Five to ten years ago, the first step that almost every gynecologic oncologist recommended was surgery,” Dr. Jeanne Schilder, a professor of obstetrics & gynecology at Indiana University Medical Center, told SurvivorNet. “We’re very fortunate that we have data now that shows us that chemotherapy is such an important element that it can be given either before surgery or after surgery.”
Read More“A patient might come in with a newly diagnosed ovarian cancer which is very firm and thick, or seems to be adherent to other organs like the intestine. In those situations, we recommend chemotherapy to shrink the cancer and then the outcome from the operation can actually be improved, with less blood loss and the ability to remove the tumor with less risk to the patient,” Dr. Schilder said.
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