title: Advanced ovarian cancer patients with no evidence of disease after platinum-based chemotherapy: retrospective analysis of the role of second-look.
abstract: From 1981 to 1992, 230 previously chemotherapy-untreated epithelial ovarian cancer patients (Stages IIb-III or IV) received platinum-based polychemotherapy at our Division. In this presentation, time to progression and overall survival rates were retrospectively analyzed in 89 epithelial ovarian cancer patients (stage IIb, c - III or IV) with no clinical evidence of disease (clinical complete remission--CCR--in 26 patients with postsurgical residual tumor > or = 2 cm, and no clinical evidence of disease--NED--in 63 patients with post-surgical residual tumor < 2 cm) after first-line platinum-containing chemotherapy. After at least 6 courses of chemotherapy, 62 patients (group A) were submitted to second-look (SL) laparotomy (n=47) or laparoscopy (n=15); 27 patients (group B) did not undergo second-look surgery because of patient refusal, the surgeon's decision or clinical contro-indications to surgery. Groups A and B were comparable in terms of post-surgical residual tumor (< 2 cm: 71% vs 70%), median Performance Status (WHO: 1) and median age (56 vs 57 yrs). FIGO stage IIb, c was more frequent in group B (26% vs 18%--p=0.004). In 9/18 (50%) patients with clinical CR and in 31/44 (70%) NED patients no residual tumor was confirmed at SL (pathological CR--pCR). After a median follow-up of 10 years (range 5-16 years), 72% (64/89) of patients relapsed and 65% (58/89) died. Survival was significantly longer in patients with pCR (median survival 76 months vs 32, 29 and 16 months for patients with pPR, pNC or pPD, respectively, p=0.0001). Multivariate analysis identifies pCR as the only significant prognostic factor exerting an influence on survival after second-look laparotomy (p=0.0000). This study confirms that the second-look can provide an important prognostic evaluation in patients without evidence of disease after chemotherapy for ovarian cancer stages III-IV.
authors.affiliation: Med. Oncology Div., S. Orsola-Malpighi Hospital, Bologna, Italy.
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Cacciari
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Zamagni
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Strocchi
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Pannuti
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Martoni
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000971:Antineoplastic Combined Chemotherapy Protocols / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D002945:Cisplatin / Q000627:therapeutic use; D003131:Combined Modality Therapy; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D009367:Neoplasm Staging; D010051:Ovarian Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000401:mortality / Q000601:surgery; D011379:Prognosis; D012086:Reoperation; D012189:Retrospective Studies
chemical_list: D002945:Cisplatin