Background
Every three and a half hours, another woman is diagnosed with ovarian cancer in Canada. It is the leading cause of death from gynaecological malignancies and the fifth most common cause of cancer death overall. Doctors can effectively treat ovarian cancer with chemotherapy but relapse is almost inevitable when the disease is advanced. The statistics are grim: seven in ten women die within five years of diagnosis and the long-term disease-free survival rate for advanced ovarian cancer is only ten percent. Ovarian cancer typically strikes women in their fifth decade. Unlike many other cancers like breast cancer and prostate cancer, the rates of incidence and mortality for ovarian cancer have not improved in 50 years and there have been no significant breakthroughs in ovarian cancer treatment in over a decade.
How does it happen?
The majority of ovarian cancers originate from epithelial cells on the surface of the ovary, although they can also arise from other cell types such as germ cells. Epithelial cancer of the ovary occurs when cells on the surface of the ovary are malignantly transformed. It is not known why this transformation occurs, though researchers have noted that this change is often accompanied by mutations in common cancer genes. In some individuals, there seems to be an increased risk for ovarian cancer due to genetic factors including mutations in the breast cancer genes, BRCA1 and BRCA2.
How is it treated?
Treatment of ovarian cancer focuses on first eliminating cancerous tissue through surgery followed by prevention of recurrence through chemotherapy. The need for chemotherapy after surgery depends on disease stage. Stage refers to how far the cancer has spread beyond the ovary. Stage I cancers are confined to the ovaries, Stage II cancers have spread to the pelvic organs (such as the uterus or fallopian tubes), Stage III cancers have spread to the abdominal organs or lymphatic system, and Stage IV cancers have spread to distant sites such as lung, liver, or brain. Ovarian cancers are also described by their grade. Grade refers to how abnormal the cancer looks under a microscope. Ovarian cancer is described on a continuum between Grade 1 and Grade 3 with Grade 1 being the most similar to normal cells and Grade 3 being the most abnormal. The most common chemotherapies are taxanes and a platinum-based therapy such as carboplatin or cisplatin. Therapy typically begins two to six weeks after surgery and occurs in three week cycles. Unlike almost all other cancers, ovarian cancer does not typically spread through the bloodstream but instead is often contained within the abdominal cavity. Because of this, chemotherapy is sometimes administered directly to this cavity as opposed to intravenously.
What is OvCaRe doing?
OvCaRe is committed to research that will result in earlier and more accurate diagnosis of disease and development of more effective and individualized therapies. For more information see OvCaRe Discoveries.
