Time Interval from Surgery to Chemo Impacts Prognosis in Ovarian Cancer

Researchers in Austria investigated whether the time interval from surgery to start of chemotherapy has an impact on clinical outcome in patients with advanced serous ovarian cancer.

Data from 191 patients with stage III or IV ovarian cancer who underwent surgery followed by platinum-based chemotherapy were analysed.  The results, which were published in Gynecologic Oncology on July 17, 2013, showed that timing of treatment, residual disease left after surgery, and stage were significant factors for overall survival.  While the interval from surgery to start of chemotherapy did not possess prognostic significance in patients without postoperative residual disease, it significantly correlated with overall survival in patients with postoperative residual disease.

Therefore, the findings suggest that delayed initiation of chemotherapy might compromise overall survival in patients with advanced serous ovarian cancer, especially when suboptimally debulked.