Outcome of ovarian cancer patients who underwent incomplete surgical staging.

OBJECTIVE To determine outcomes of patients with early stage epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC) who underwent incomplete surgical staging with those who had complete surgical staging. MATERIAL AND METHOD Retrospective chart reviews were performed on early EOC (FIGO Stage I-II) patients who had registered in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital between 1994 and 2003. Two groups of patients were identified, patients who underwent incomplete surgical staging (n = 51) and those who had complete surgical staging (n = 50). Recurrence rate and disease free interval were demonstrated. The 5 years survival was estimated using Kaplan-Meire method RESULTS Between 1994 and 2003, 101 patients presented with early EOC. The median age at presentation was 48 years (range, 24-86). Histology distribution showed clear cell carcinoma in 35 cases (34.7%), mucinous carcinoma in 25 cases (24.8%), endometrioid carcinoma in 22 cases (21.8%), mixed epithelial cancer in 10 cases (9.9%), and serous carcinoma in nine cases (8.9%). Fifty-one cases (50.5%) underwent incomplete surgical staging initially. Recurrent rate in the incomplete surgical staging group was 11.8% compared with 14% in complete surgical staging group (p = 0.257). At the median follow up of 60 months, 50.5% of patients survived The 5 years survival rate of incomplete surgical staged was 82.4% and 94.6%, in complete surgical staged (p = 0.404), when focused in the subgroup analysis, incomplete staging group with histology grade 3 compared to complete staging group. They had overall 5 years survival rate 81.1% vs. 88.4% (p = 0.037). Patients with stage II who underwent incomplete staging or complete staging had an overall survival rate 63% vs. 92.3% (p = 0.012). CONCLUSION In King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital, overall outcome of patients with early stage epithelial ovarian cancer who had incomplete staging was no different from patients who had complete staging. However, patients who had incomplete staging with grade 3 or stage II tended to have less recurrent rate and survival time.