Thursday July 3rd...Dr. Dodson (2)...treatment options, surgery for early ovarian cancer

Treatment options:

The doctor said I had (3) options;

1.      Do nothing- (he said if I were 80 years old then this would be ok but it wasn’t an option for me because I was to young)

2.      Just do Chemo-which might not take care of all the cancer. If a piece of cancer gets left about the size of the middle of a sharpie he would give me 23 months. That’s big enough to make it have a vascular source giving it the ability to grow.

3.    Surgery & Chemo.

When ovarian cancer is diagnosed, it is vital to determine if the cancer has spread beyond the ovaries. If your surgeon thinks it is possible to remove all or most of your cancer, you will have surgery before your chemotherapy.

Most women with ovarian cancer will have surgery to remove

·         Both ovaries and fallopian tubes

·         The womb (uterus), including the cervix

This operation is called a total abdominal hysterectomy (TAH) and bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy (BSO).

Surgery for early ovarian cancer

·         During the surgery to remove your ovaries and womb (my uterus/fallopian tubes/cervix were already done), my doctor will take biopsies from several areas within the abdomen and pelvis to find out if the cancer has spread. This is so that they can fully stage the cancer. This helps the doctor decide if you need treatment after surgery. The doctor said he takes the biopsies from where gravity falls. When you sit the cells settle there, when you lay back they can spread.

·         My doctor will remove a layer of fatty tissue that is close to the ovaries, called the omentum.  This is important as ovarian cancer can spread there.  Removing the omentum is called an omentectomy. 

                                                    [Organs in the abdomen (above)]

                                                    [Cutting away of the Omentum]

[an actual Omentum]

·         My doctor will put some sterile fluid inside my abdomen and then remove it. They then send this to the laboratory to see if it contains cancer cells. This is called peritoneal or abdominal washings.

My doctor also will:

·         Remove some lymph nodes (pelvic and para-aortic lymph nodes) for biopsies.

·         In addition my doctor said he would be checking my liver,

·         Look at the underside of my diaphragm and do a biopsy.

·         He will also be taking out my appendix. He says they usually have to go back in and take it out so they just take it out to begin with.

My upcoming surgery is on August 4^th; the doctor will be doing all of the above.