August 10th, 2009
A new study has proven that it is possible to preserve the fertility of a young woman diagnosed with early stage ovarian cancer, without compromising her survival; the solution is to save the woman’s uterus or ovary.
Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons researchers discovered that survival rates during the first five years of cancer diagnosis are comparable between women who had one ovary or their uterus pardoned and women who had a hysterectomy or both ovaries removed.
The report which is available through Cancer, concluded “Given the potential reproductive and non-reproductive benefits of ovarian and uterine preservation, the benefits of conservative surgical management should be considered in young woman with ovarian cancer.”
As stated in a news release by Columbia University despite the evasiveness of a hysterectomy, the removal of both ovaries, and the estrogen depravation that may cause secondary health concerns, the procedure is still often viewed as the best surgical treatment for cancer.
Dr. Jason Wright and colleagues examined more than 4,000 ovarian cancer patients, aged 50 years and younger who had undergone surgery for the disease during a six-year period. Out of the 4000, 400 had ovary conservation and roughly 650 had uterine preservation, their survival rates generally corresponded with their fellow ovarian cancer patients who underwent the entire hysterectomy or ovary removal.