"The approach worked for me," triathlete and ovarian cancer survivor Leslie Russell of Houston says.The new approach determined Leslie Russell needed chemotherapy before surgery. More than a year later, doctors say her prognosis is great.
Houston doctors are employing a new approach against ovarian cancer that dramatically improves the likelihood tumors are completely removed during surgery, the key to beating the deadly disease.
The approach, now being used by all M.D. Anderson gynecologic oncologists treating advanced ovarian cancer, involves an initial laparoscopic procedure to better diagnose the extent of the disease and a mathematical formula that surgeons apply to predict whether the patient should go directly to surgery or receive chemotherapy first.
"This protocol enables us to personalize surgical therapy and be much smarter about its timing," said Dr. Anil Sood, an M.D. Anderson professor of gynecologic oncology and reproductive medicine and the effort's leader. "It results in much more precise surgery, which we think will lower death rates from ovarian cancer."
M.D. Anderson doctors have been treating ovarian cancer patients, about 155 now, with the new protocol since the spring of 2013, when the project was launched as part of the institution's Moon Shots program. The program seeks to improve treatment of eight difficult cancers or cancer groupings.
The team hasn't published any data on the approach because patients need to be tracked longer to determine outcomes. But Sood said the team is successfully removing all visible tumor cells of more than 90 percent of patients who go directly to surgery and 85 percent of those who undergo chemotherapy to reduce the burden of malignant cells prior to surgery. Historically, Sood said, surgery in advanced ovarian patients around the world achieves complete removal of tumor cells no more than 35 percent of the time.
Sood said he anticipates data will eventually show at least a 25 percent improvement in ovarian cancer survival rates.
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