New Treatment for Ovarian Cancer

Several news services, including the New York Times, have published an article highlighting the results of a recent study on ovarian cancer from the New England Journal of Medicine showing that abdominal chemotherapy could help patients.  This is the third such study in a decade to show positive results with this treatment.  The National Cancer institute took the unusual step of formally announcing to doctors that they should offer this treatment to all women who met the criteria.  The abdominal treatment combined with traditional intravenous chemotherapy could add sixteen months or more to the lives of women with advanced chemotherapy.

But the abdominal treatment is not without its challenges.  The side-effects are more severe than traditional chemotherapy. The process is also more difficult to administer.  But as the New England Journal of Medicine points out, the intense therapy boosts survival rates.

• New York Times: Therapy Falls Out of Favor...
• Detroit Free Press: Ovarian Cancer Fight Has New Hope
• New England Journal of Medicine: Treatment of Ovarian Cancer