Ovarian Cancer Treatment

This is the main treatment of ovarian cancer. The goal of surgery is to remove the tumor, but complete removal of the uterus is often necessary, called hysterectomy. The doctor might also recommend removing both ovaries and fallopian tubes, nearby lymph nodes, and other pelvic tissue.

Targeted therapy attacks the cancer cells while doing little damage to the normal cells. Your doctor may test your cancer cells to determine which targeted therapy will have more effect on your cancer.

To know more please visit the Targetted drug therapy page.

It is a drug treatment that uses chemicals to kill the growing cancer cells in the body. It can be injected into the vein or taken by mouth. It is often used after surgery to kill the remaining cancer cells. Chemotherapy for ovarian cancer can also be used ahead of surgery.

It uses drugs to block the effects of ovary cancer cells. Some ovarian cancer cells use estrogen to help them grow up hence blocking them can help control ovarian cancer. It can be a treatment option for slow-growing ovarian cancer and can be a treatment of cancer that comes back after initial treatments.

It uses the immune system to fight against cancer. The body’s disease-fighting immune system might not attack cancer cells because they produce a protein that helps cancer cells to hide from immune system cells. Hence immunotherapy interferes with this process.

To know more please visit the Immunotherapy page.

It is specialized medical care that focuses on providing relief from pain and other symptoms of serious illness. They offer an extra layer of support that adds to your continuing care. It can be used while undergoing aggressive treatment, such as chemotherapy or surgery. When this is used along with other appropriate treatments, people feel better and live longer.

It is provided by a team of doctors, nurses, and other trained professionals. It aims to improve the quality of life for people with cancer and their families.

Treatments like chemotherapy, radiation therapy, and surgery can damage your reproductive organs, which makes it difficult to become pregnant in the future. There are possible fertility preservations that include:

• Embryo Freezing – This requires freezing a fertilized egg.
• Oocyte Freezing – This requires freezing an unfertilized egg.
• Surgery to preserve fertility – Here, only one ovary with cancer is removed which is only possible during early-stage ovarian cancer.
• Ovarian tissue preservation – This involves removing and freezing the ovarian tissue for the future.
• Ovarian suppression – Taking hormones to suppress ovarian function temporarily.

Generally, during the early stage of ovarian cancer, the cancer is localised inside the uterus and has not spread anywhere else in the body. Therefore, to avoid the growth of cancer cells, your doctor may suggest you get your cancer removed surgically. 

The surgery can be done either using the laparoscopic technique that involves the removal of the cancerous cells through small holes that your surgeon had made.

Sometimes your doctor can use traditional open surgery to remove the cancer cells.

During stage 2 of ovarian cancer, there is a risk that cancer can spread to the neighbouring structures in the pelvic region, like the fallopian tubes. But during this stage, cancer does not spread beyond the pelvis. 

For treating stage 2 cancer, your doctor might advise surgical removal of your uterus, or sometimes just the ovaries with the fallopian tubes (BSO surgery).

Chemotherapy has also helped many women with stage 2 ovarian cancer recover from it.

The treatment for stage 3 ovarian cancer is similar to stage 2 ovarian cancer. However, for treating stage 3 cancer, your doctor may advise you of some additional doses of chemotherapy. 

Sometimes based on the spread and severity of symptoms, your doctor may advise you on additional treatment.

During the ovarian cancer treatment stage 4, the cancerous cells begin to spread to other parts of the body, thereby, making it difficult for doctors to check cancer growth. 

Generally, doctors use chemotherapy, to shrink cancer, followed by surgery. 

Alternatively, your doctor may recommend combination treatments, like mixing targeted therapy with immunotherapy for people who have not responded well to other treatment methods.