Ellen Mytnik originally believed that the swelling in her
ankles and feet were signs of overworking herself, but as other symptoms popped
up she decided to consult her doctor. Thank goodness she acted as soon as she
did, because one CT scan later Ellen was diagnosed with ovarian cancer.
"A CT scan showed
a potentially cancerous mass growing in Mytnik’s abdomen. After further tests,
Mytnik was diagnosed with ovarian cancer.
Mytnik’s physician,
Dr. M. Patrick Lowe, a gynecologic oncologist with Advocate Medical Group,
recommended that she have surgery to be followed by chemotherapy.
As part of her
post-surgery treatment, Dr. Lowe recommended a groundbreaking therapy called
intraperitoneal chemotherapy. This approach delivers chemotherapy both directly
into the abdomen and intravenously.
In February 2012,
during a four-hour surgery, Dr. Lowe and his team successfully removed a 25 cm
tumor (nearly 10 inches). The procedure, called optimal cytoreductive surgery,
removes all visible evidence of cancer from the abdomen at the time of surgery.
This type of surgery is associated with the best survival outcomes when
combined with aggressive postsurgical chemotherapy, says Dr. Lowe.
After the surgery,
Mytnik, one of the first to be given intraperitoneal chemotherapy at Advocate
Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, Ill., received six cycles of the new
therapy.
Ovarian cancer is the
fifth leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States, according to
the American Cancer Society. Despite that sobering statistic, Dr. Lowe, who
specializes in the management of ovarian and other gynecologic cancers at
Advocate Christ Medical Center, says studies show that a majority of U.S. women
do not receive treatment for ovarian cancer from a board-certified gynecologic
oncologist or receive standard-of-care chemotherapy treatments after surgery,
which has a negative impact on overall survival.
Today, Mytnik is fully
recovered, with no evidence of the disease and no long-term side effects of the
surgery or chemotherapy, says Dr. Lowe. And she missed only three weeks as a
substitute teacher in Minooka, Ill.
This past June, she
attended Christ Medical Center’s annual cancer survivors’ luncheon for the
second time with her family."
Mytnik isn't the only patient to benefit from this therapy,
as the superior survival rates for those receiving it have led to many
gynecologic oncologists to consider it the standard.
