Radiologically enlarged cardiophrenic lymph nodes and CA-125 in relation to diaphragmatic carcinomatosis, surgical outcome, and overall survival in advanced ovarian cancer.

BACKGROUND: We primarily aimed to determine whether the presence of enlarged cardiophrenic lymph nodes (CPLNs), visualized by computed tomography (CT), and CA-125 can be used to assess diaphragmatic carcinomatosis and residual disease (RD) in advanced ovarian cancer (AOC) patients treated with upfront surgery. The secondary aim was to determine the prognostic role of CT-CPLNs in overall survival (OS). MATERIAL AND METHODS: A single-center, retrospective, population-based study was conducted of patients who underwent surgery for AOC from January 1, 2014-December 31, 2018. Suspicious CT-CPLNs were defined as having a short axis ≥5 mm. The median survival and rate of survival were calculated with the Kaplan-Meier method using multivariate Cox regression analyses, including comparisons of complete cytoreductive surgery (CCS; defined as the complete removal of all intra-abdominal tumor) versus noncomplete cytoreductive surgery (non-CCS) and analyses related to CT-CPLN status and preoperative CA-125 values. RESULTS: We included 208 patients. CT-CPLNs correlated with both diaphragmatic carcinomatosis (OR 3.59, 95% CI 1.81-7.16, p < 0.01) and RD (OR 2.54, 95% CI 1.38-4.6, p = 0.003). When CCS was achieved, no differences in survival between patients with suspicious or nonsuspicious CT-CPLNs were found. The relationships between CA-125 ≥ 500 U/ml and diaphragmatic carcinomatosis (OR 3.51, 95% CI 1.86-6.64, p < 0.01) and RD (OR 2.41, 95% CI 1.33-4.38, p = 0.004) were positive. All data were adjusted for age and ECOG performance status. Survival analyses were also adjusted for RD. CONCLUSION: Enlarged CPLNs on CT scans and CA-125 levels correlate with diaphragmatic carcinomatosis and RD at the end of the surgery. The strongest prognostic factor for OS remains CCS, regardless of the CT-CPLN status.

Ovarian tumor frozen section, a multidisciplinary affair.

BACKGROUND: Ovarian Cancer (OC) constitute the eighth most common cancers among women worldwide. Surgery remains the cornerstone in the management of OC. Intraoperative frozen section (FS) diagnosis is widely used to decide the surgery course. We aimed to assess the reliability of intraoperative FS diagnosis for treatment planning of patients with suspected OC from a multidisciplinary perspective. The clinical consequences of reclassification and the multidisciplinary management of the therapy plan, is the secondary aim of this study. To our knowledge, this information is sparely investigated. METHODS: A single-center, retrospective population-based study of patients who underwent surgery for suspected OC between 2018 and 2020. Histopathological outcomes were classified as benign, borderline, or malignant. The FS diagnosis was the diagnostic test, and the final histopathology report was the gold standard. Diagnostic capability for treatment planning was assessed, and modifications made possible by overall clinical knowledge were discussed. RESULTS: A total of 358 patients were identified, of whom 187 were included in the FS group. Overall accuracy was 89.8%, and 19 patients were reclassified; the malignancy grade of 15 tumors was underestimated. Prevalence, sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value for invasive malignancies on FS were 54.0% (CI 46.6-61.3%), 88.1% (CI 80.2-93.7%), 98.8% (CI 93.7-99.9%), 98.9% (CI 92.7-99.8%), and 87.6% (CI 80.6-92.4%), respectively. Tumors incorrectly graded by FS tended to be of borderline-related. CONCLUSIONS: The reliability of the FS methodology was an accurate test to help perform appropriate surgery and plan swift oncological treatment. FS is a reliable method to diagnose invasive malignancies and benign pathology. The communication between the pathologist, surgeon, and medical oncologist is highly important for both intraoperative decision-making and postoperative patient care.

The role of computed tomography in the assessment of tumour extent and the risk of residual disease after upfront surgery in advanced ovarian cancer (AOC).

PURPOSE: Epithelial ovarian cancer is usually diagnosed in the advanced stages. To choose the best therapeutic approach, an accurate preoperative assessment of the tumour extent is crucial. This study aimed to determine whether the peritoneal cancer index (PCI), the amount of ascites, and the presence of cardiophrenic nodes (CPLNs) visualized by computed tomography (CT) can assess the tumour extent (S-PCI) and residual disease (RD) for advanced ovarian cancer (AOC) patients treated with upfront surgery. METHODS: In total, 118 AOC cases were included between January 2016 and December 2018 at Skåne University Hospital, Lund, Sweden. Linear regression and interclass correlation (ICC) analyses were used to determine the relationship between CT-PCI and S-PCI. The patients were stratified in complete cytoreductive surgery (CCS) with no RD or to non-CCS with RD of any size. The amount of ascites on CT (CT-ascites), CA-125 and the presence of radiological enlarged CPLNs (CT-CPLN) were analysed to evaluate their impact on estimating RD. RESULTS: CT-PCI correlated well with S-PCI (0.397; 95% CI 0.252-0.541; p < 0.001). The risk of RD was also related to CT-PCI (OR 1.069 (1.009-1.131), p < 0.023) with a cut-off of 21 for CT-PCI (0.715, p = 0.000). The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value and negative predictive value were 58.5, 70.3, 52.2 and 75.4%, respectively. CT-ascites above 1000 ml predicted RD (OR 3.510 (1.298-9.491) p < 0.013). CONCLUSION: CT is a reliable tool to assess the extent of the disease in advanced ovarian cancer. Higher CT-PCI scores and large volumes of ascites estimated on CT predicted RD of any size.

Tru-Cut Biopsy in Gynecological Cancer: Adequacy, Accuracy, Safety and Clinical Applicability.

Purpose: Tru-cut biopsy is a minimally invasive technique used to obtain tissue samples for the diagnosis of tumors, especially in patients where primary surgery is not indicated. The aim of this study was to assess the adequacy, accuracy and safety of the tru-cut biopsy for diagnosis in gynecological cancer. Methods: A retrospective population-based review of 328 biopsies was conducted. The indications for tru-cut biopsies were diagnosis of primary tumors, metastases of gynecological and non-gynecological tumors, and suspected recurrences. A tissue sample was considered adequate when the quality/quality was sufficient to identify the subtype/origin of the tumor. Potential factors affecting adequacy were analyzed using logistic regressions analyses. Accuracy was defined as agreement between the diagnosis of the tru-cut biopsy and the postoperative histology. The therapy plan was registered, and the clinical applicability of the tru-cut biopsy was investigated. Complications within 30 days after the biopsy procedure were registered. Results: In total, 300 biopsies were identified as tru-cut biopsies. The overall adequacy was 86.3%, varying between 80.8% and 93.5%, respectively, when performed by a gynecological oncologist or a gynecologist with a subspecialty in ultrasound diagnosis. Sampling of a pelvic mass had a lower adequacy (81.6%) compared with sampling of the omentum (93.9%) or carcinomatosis (91.5%). The accuracy was 97.5%, and the complication rate was 1.3%. Conclusion: The tru-cut biopsy is a safe and reliable diagnostic method with a high accuracy and a good adequacy, depending on the site of the tissue sample, indications for the biopsy and the experience of the operator.

Age and Referral Route Impact the Access to Diagnosis for Women with Advanced Ovarian Cancer.

Purpose: The majority of women with ovarian cancer are diagnosed in late stages. Most women do have symptoms prior to diagnosis, sometimes several months before the diagnosis. The aim of this study was to evaluate the timeline from the first presentation of symptoms to a physician until there is a reasonable suspicion of cancer, among women diagnosed with advanced stage ovarian cancer. We wanted to investigate which symptoms were the most common and whether there are other factors affecting the time interval before the suspicion of cancer was confirmed. Patients and Methods: This was a retrospective population-based cohort study of women diagnosed with advanced ovarian cancer between January 1, 2017 and December 31, 2019 who were referred to Skane University Hospital Lund, Sweden. Data were collected from electronic medical records at Skane University Hospital. The time interval was recorded as the time from first physician consultation with predefined symptoms to the date when there was a reasonable suspicion of ovarian cancer. Data processing and statistical analysis were performed with the statistical software R. Results: Among the 249 patients included in this study, the median time interval from the first consultation to the reasonable suspicion of cancer was 24 days. The first consultation in specialized care had a 70% decrease in delay compared to primary care. Emergency consultations had a 52.2% decrease in time delay compared to planned consultations. Older age was associated with an increase in the geometric mean by 54.7%, comparing the first to the third quartile. The most common symptom was abdominal pain. Conclusion: The length of time interval from first presentation with symptoms relating to ovarian cancer to reasonable suspicion of cancer was associated with whether the consultation was in primary or specialized care, emergency or planned visit and the patient's age.

Imaging ovarian cancer - from baseline characteristics to high-risk image factors.

BACKGROUND: Imaging ovarian cancer (OC) includes evaluating peritoneal carcinomatosis (PC) and enlarged cardio phrenic lymph nodes (CPLN) by computed tomography (CT), and thorough evaluation is tedious work. A "CT short score" with high-risk CT parameters might be a more pragmatic approach, but it is not known if such a short score associates with aggressive OC subtypes and impaired OC survival. Further, it is not known if certain established OC risk factors are linked to high-risk CT-findings which would be important in image evaluation. Herein, we investigate a CT short score and its relation to baseline characteristics, OC subtypes, and survival. METHODS: The Malmö Diet and Cancer Study is a prospective cohort that included 17,035 women (1991-1996). Baseline characteristics and tumor information on 159 OC and information on OC specific survival (last follow-up, 2017-12-31) was registered. A CT short score (CPLN and PC-index (PCI) in seven regions) was registered and associations with clinical stage [stage I vs. advanced stage (II-IV), histological type/grade (high grade serous and endometrioid vs. other subtypes], and OC-specific survival were analyzed with logistic and Cox regression, respectively. Parity and menopausal status were analyzed in relation to short score and PCI. RESULTS: There was an association between higher short score and advanced clinical stage (adjusted OR 2.76 (1.42-5.38)), adjusted for age at diagnosis and histological type/grade. Higher short score was associated with impaired OC specific survival (adjusted HR 1.17 (1.01-1.35)), adjusted for age at diagnosis, histological type/grade, and clinical stage. There were no significant associations between parity, menopausal status, and short score/PCI. CONCLUSIONS: CT short score was significantly associated with advanced clinical stages and impaired OC survival. A pragmatic approach (based on CT) to evaluate high risk image findings in OC could help reduce radiologists' workload and at the same time provide structured reports to surgeons and oncologists involved in OC care.

Prognostic Value of Peritoneal Cancer Index After Complete Cytoreductive Surgery in Advanced Ovarian Cancer.

BACKGROUND/AIM: Residual disease (RD) after primary debulking surgery (PDS) is a prognostic factor for survival in advanced ovarian cancer (AOC). This study aimed to examine whether the tumor extent affects overall survival (OS) and progression-free survival (PFS) in AOC patients treated with PDS. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A total of 118 patients treated with PDS were included. Age, ECOG score, AOC International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) stage, CA-125, RD, peritoneal cancer index (PCI), preoperative imaging (CT-PCI) and macroscopic visualization at the surgery start (S-PCI) were analyzed. Tumor extent was quantified using the PCI, and by CT-PCI and S-PCI. Cox regression, Kaplan-Meier and receiver operating curves (ROC) were performed for survival analyses. RESULTS: S-PCI correlated with both OS (1.067, 95%CI=1.018-1.119, p<0.007) and PFS. Patients exhibiting S-PCI≥18.5, adjusted to age, performance status, and RD, had a two-fold risk of dying (HR=2.070, 95%CI=1.061-4.038, p=0.033) compared those with PCI<18.5. CT-PCI correlated with OS in crude data (1.037, 95%CI=1.005-1.071, p=0.025), but this was not sustained in multivariate analyses. RD of any size doubled the risk of dying (2.177, 95%CI=1.235-3.838, p=0.007). CONCLUSION: The tumor extent at the beginning of surgery seemed to affect OS in patients with AOC, regardless of the extent of RD at the end of the surgery. PCI above 18.5 doubled the risk of dying of the disease. No difference in major complications was noted in the two groups of patients. CT-PCI seemed to play a prognostic role for PFS; however, it is still to be investigated as a prognostic factor for OS.

Ovarian cancer subtypes and survival in relation to three comprehensive imaging parameters.

BACKGROUND: Ovarian cancer (OC) is usually detected in late clinical stages, and imaging at diagnosis is crucial. Peritoneal carcinomatosis (PC) and cardio phrenic lymph nodes (CPLN) are pathological findings of computed tomography (CT) and are relevant for surgical planning. Furthermore, mammographic breast density (BD) has shown an association with OC risk and might be prognostically relevant. However, it is not known if PC, CPLN, and BD are associated with aggressive OC subtypes and impaired OC survival. Herein, we investigated associations between three comprehensive image parameters and OC subtypes and survival. METHODS: The Malmö Diet and Cancer Study is a prospective study that included 17,035 women (1991-1996). Tumor information on 159 OC and information on OC specific survival (last follow-up, 2017-12-31) was registered. The CT and mammography closest to diagnosis were evaluated (Peritoneal Carcinomatosis Index PCI, CPLN, and BD). Associations between CT-PCI, CPLN, and BD vs. clinical stage [stage I vs. advanced stage (II-IV), histological type/grade (high grade serous and endometrioid vs. other subtypes], and OC-specific survival were analyzed by logistic and Cox regression. RESULTS: There was a significant association between higher CT-PCI score and advanced clinical stage (adjusted OR 1.26 (1.07-1.49)), adjusted for age at diagnosis and histological type/grade. Increasing CT-PCI was significantly associated with impaired OC specific survival (adjusted HR 1.04 (1.01-1.07)), adjusted for age at diagnosis, histological type/grade, and clinical stage. There was no significant association between PCI and histological type/grade, nor between BD or CPLN vs. the studied outcomes. CONCLUSIONS: Image PCI score was significantly associated with advanced clinical stages and impaired OC survival. An objective approach (based on imaging) to scoring peritoneal carcinomatosis in ovarian cancer could help surgeons and oncologists to optimize surgical planning, treatment, and care.