[Laparoscopy for diagnosis and treatment of adnexal masses]. / Laparoscopia na abordagem inicial de tumores anexiais.

PURPOSE: To assess clinical factors, histopathologic diagnoses, operative time and differences in complication rates between women undergoing laparoscopy or laparotomy to diagnose and treat an adnexal mass and their association with laparoscopy failure. METHODS: In this prospective study, 210 women were invited to participate and 133 of them were included. Eighty-eight women underwent laparotomy and 45 underwent laparoscopy. Fourteen of the 45 laparoscopies were converted to laparotomy intraoperatively. We assessed whether age, body mass index (BMI), previous abdominal surgeries, CA-125, Index of Risk of Malignancy (IRM), tumor diameter, histological diagnosis, operative time and surgical complication rates differed between the laparoscopy group and the group converted to laparotomy and whether those factors were associated with conversion of laparoscopy to laparotomy. We also assessed surgical logs to evaluate the reasons, as stated by the surgeons, to convert a laparoscopy to laparotomy. RESULTS: In this research, 30% of the women had malignant tumors. CA-125, IRM, tumor diameter and operative times were higher for the laparotomy group than the laparoscopy group. Complication rates were similar for both groups and also for the successful laparoscopy and unsuccessful laparoscopy groups. The surgical complication rate in women with benign tumors was lower for the laparoscopy group than for the laparotomy group. The factors associated with conversion to laparotomy were tumor diameter and malignancy. During laparoscopy, adhesions a large tumor diameter were the principal causes of conversion. CONCLUSION: This study suggests that laparoscopy for the diagnosis and treatment of adnexal masses is safe and does not increase complication rates even in patients who need conversion to laparotomy. However, when doubt about the safety of the procedure and about the presence of malignancy persists, consultation with an expert gynecology-oncologist with experience in advanced laparoscopy is recommended. A large tumor diameter was associated with the necessity of conversion to laparotomy.

Analysis of the contribution of immunologically-detectable HER2, steroid receptors and of the "triple-negative" tumor status to disease-free and overall survival of women with epithelial ovarian cancer.

We assessed associations between steroid receptors including: estrogen-alpha, estrogen-beta, androgen receptor, progesterone receptor, the HER2 status and triple-negative epithelial ovarian cancer (ERα-/PR-/HER2-; TNEOC) status and survival in women with epithelial ovarian cancer. The study included 152 women with primary epithelial ovarian cancer. The status of steroid receptor and HER2 was determined by immunohistochemistry. Disease-free and overall survival were calculated and compared with steroid receptor and HER2 status as well as clinicopathological features using the Cox Proportional Hazards model. A mean follow-up period of 43.6 months (interquartile range=41.4 months) was achieved where 44% of patients had serous tumor, followed by mucinous (23%), endometrioid (9%), mixed (9%), undifferentiated (8.5%) and clear cell tumors (5.3%). ER-alpha staining was associated with grade II-III tumors. Progesterone receptor staining was positively associated with a Body Mass Index≥25. Androgen receptor positivity was higher in serous tumors. In stand-alone analysis of receptor contribution to survival, estrogen-alpha positivity was associated with greater disease-free survival. However, there was no significant association between steroid receptor expression, HER2 status, or TNEOC status, and overall survival. Although estrogen-alpha, androgen receptor, progesterone receptor and the HER2 status were associated with key clinical features of the women and pathological characteristics of the tumors, these associations were not implicated in survival. Interestingly, women with TNEOC seem to fare the same way as their counterparts with non-TNEOC.

[Inclusion of symptoms in the discrimination between benign and malignant adnexal masses]. / Inclusão dos sintomas na discriminação entre tumores anexiais benignos e malignos.

PURPOSE: To assess the association between clinical symptoms and the diagnosis of malignancy in women with adnexal tumors who underwent surgery. METHODS: Cross-sectional study, in which 105 women with adnexal tumors and indication for laparotomy/laparoscopy were included. All women were treated at a teaching hospital in the state of São Paulo between November 2009 and March 2011. All patients underwent a structured interview about the occurrence of 18 symptoms associated with ovarian cancer. The interview included the severity, frequency, and duration of these symptoms in the 12 months prior to the first medical consultation. The CA125 levels and the ultrasound classification of the tumors were also evaluated. We calculated for each symptom the prevalence ratio with 95% confidence intervals. The golden-standard was the result of the pathological examination of the surgical specimens. RESULTS: Of the 105 women included, 75 (71.4%) had benign tumors and 30 (28.6%) had malignant ones. In women with malignant tumors, the most frequent symptoms were: abdominal bloating (70%), increased abdominal size (67%), pelvic pain (60%), menstrual irregularity (60%), swelling (53%), abdominal pain (50%), backache (50%), and early repletion (50%). Women with benign tumors showed essentially pelvic pain (61%), menstrual irregularities (61%), and abdominal swelling (47%). Symptoms significantly associated with malignancy were: bloating (PR=2.0; 95%CI 1.01 - 3.94), increased abdominal size (PR=2.16; 95%CI 1.12 - 4.16), backache (RP=1.97; 95%CI 1.09 - 3.55), swelling (PR=2.25; 95%CI 1.25 - 4.07), early repletion (RP=2.06; 95%CI 1.14 - 3.70), abdominal mass (PR=1.83; 95%CI 1.01 - 3.30), eating difficulties (PR=1.98; 95%CI 1.10 - 3.56), and postmenopausal bleeding (PR=2.91; 95%CI 1.55 - 5.44). The presence of pelvic pain, constipation, dyspareunia, fatigue, abdominal pain, nausea or vomiting, menstrual irregularity, weight loss, diarrhea, and bleeding after intercourse was similar in both groups. CONCLUSIONS: In women with adnexal tumors including indication of surgical treatment, the preoperative evaluation of symptoms may help predicting malignancy.