Abstract
Seventy-three patients with stage III ovarian cancer (1968-1992) were studied with respect to operation, chemotherapy, histology and prognosis. First operation was performed for all cases. For the 26 cases (36.6%), complete tumor reduction was possible (group A-1). Incomplete operation was performed for 25 cases (residual tumor: 6 cases<2 cm, 19 cases>2cm) and probe laparotomy was applied for the other 22 cases (30.1% group B). After the first operation, for 66 cases (90.4%), following chemotherapy was performed. Except for the probe laparotomy cases, adjuvant chemotherapy with mainly FAMT or FAMX (majority was the patients before 1986) was applied. Among them, five-year survival of the group A-1 (with a complete tumor reduction by the first operation, followed by adjuvant chemotherapy) was 33.8%. On the other hand, for the 17 probe laparotomy cases of the group B, chemotherapy with CAP or CP as a neoadjuvant chemotherapy was applied (majority was patients after 1986). The other 5 cases of the probe laparotomy died soon after the first operation. As a result, for the 9 cases (40.9%) out of the 22, neoadjuvant chemotherapy was carried out. Five-year survival of the 9 cases was 88.9%. Histology of the 9 cases, 7 were serous cystadenocarcinoma and the other 2 were endmetrioid adenocarcinoma. Present data suggest that complete tumor resection was essential for the advanced ovarian cancer regardless of the first or second operation. For the cases of probe laparotomy with serous cystadenocarcinoma or endmetrioid adenocarcinoma, neoadjuvant chemotherapy should be tried expecting the second operation for complete tumor reduction.
