To print: Select File and then Print from your browser's menu --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Title: Ovarian Cancer Screening Improves Life Expectancy URL: http://www.pslgroup.com/dg/F3D06.htm Doctor's Guide April 9, 1999
LONDON, ENGLAND -- April 9, 1999 -- The results of a trial in this week's issue of The Lancet provide the first evidence that screening may help women found to have ovarian cancer to live longer. In the United Kingdom, only 30 percent of women remain alive five years after a diagnosis of ovarian cancer. It has long been hoped, therefore, that through detection of this cancer in its early stages by screening, a procedure that has been standard practice in breast cancer prevention for many years, the outcome for the woman could be improved. The benefits of screening for ovarian cancer have long been debated. Previous studies have suggested that a substantial proportion of ovarian cancers can be detected before symptoms arise, by measurement of the antibody CA 125 in a blood sample, ultrasonography of the ovaries and a technique called colour-flow doppler. Yet it has not been clarified whether screening will confer a decrease in death rates and such information is essential if a national screening programme is to be considered. Dr. Ian Jacobs and colleagues report their findings from their pilot feasibility study in postmenopausal women aged 45 years or older. These women were randomised into two groups - 10,997 were offered screening and 10,958 were not. Those in the screening group were offered annual screens for three years that involved measurement of CA 125 and ovarian ultrasonography. The screening identified 29 women who might have ovarian cancers. In six cases cancer was confirmed but the result was false-positive in 23 women. During follow-up after the screening phase, 10 more cases of ovarian cancer were found in the screened group and 20 in the control group. Nine of 10,958 women in the screening group and 18 of 10,958 in the control group died of ovarian cancer. Over the seven-year follow-up period, the average survival time of women who acquired the cancer was longer in the screening group (72.9 months) than in the control group (41.8 months). The investigators state that screening for ovarian cancer would be a major undertaking with disadvantages and limitations as well as benefits, but they added that they feel results from this trial are encouraging and justify a larger randomised trial among the general population, to assess whether screening can have a beneficial effect on the rate of death from ovarian cancer. Related Link: The Lancet --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Copyright © 1999 P\S\L Consulting Group Inc. All rights reserved. Republication or redistribution of P\S\L content is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of P\S\L. P\S\L shall not be liable for any errors, omissions or delays in this content or any other content on its sites, newsletters or other publications, nor for any decisions or actions taken in reliance on such content. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- This news story was printed from *Doctor's Guide to the Internet* located at http://www.docguide.com --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Return to News Story Page This site is maintained by webmaster@pslgroup.com Please contact us with any comments, problems or bugs. All contents Copyright (c) 1998 P\S\L Consulting Group Inc. All rights reserved.