Background & objective: Epithelial ovarian cancer is moderate sensitivity to chemotherapy; the survival has been improved by aggressive cytoreductive surgery followed by combination chemotherapy with cisplatin-based regimen.However,there is a controversy about chemotherapeutic sensitivity of its lymph node metastasis. This study was designed to evaluate chemotherapeutic sensitivity and prognosis of lymph node metastases in epithelial ovarian cancer.
Methods: The authors retrospectively analyzed 50 cases of epithelial ovarian cancer with lymph node metastases in Cancer Hospital,Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Peking Union Medical College from June 1986 to February 2001, which included 32 cases with stage III-IV, and 18 with recurrent disease. All the 50 patients were with valuable metastatic lymph nodes,and among these patients 38 were also with valuable abdominal-pelvic tumor. Forty-six patients received 1-3 courses of neoadjuvant chemotherapy,cytoreductive surgery, and postoperative chemotherapy. The response rate was evaluated by the response criteria for solid tumor. The chemotherapy included neoadjuvant chemotherapy, and chemotherapy for patients with residual tumor after operation or recurrence. Forty-five patients received platinum-based chemotherapy regimens [including CP (cyclophosphamide+cisplatin), CAP (cyclophosphamide+epirubicin+cisplatin), TC (paclitaxel+carboplatin), TP (paclitaxel+cisplatin), cisplatin+mitomycin+vincristine+etoposide+carboplatin, gemcitabine+carboplatin,IEP(ifosphamide+etoposide+cisplatin regimens) and 1 patient received melphalan, 1 patient with CF(cyclophosphamide+5-fluorouracil)regimen, 3 patients with ifosphamide+etoposide.
Results: The overall response rates of lymph node metastasis and abdominal-pelvic tumor were 68.0% and 71.1%, respectively (P >0.05). The response rates of lymph node metastasis and abdominal-pelvic tumor for stage III-IV were 78.1% and 76.7%, respectively (P >0.05); both were 50% for recurrent patients with epithelial ovarian cancer.
Conclusion: Either in stage III-IV or in recurrent patients with epithelial ovarian cancer, chemotherapeutic sensitivity of lymph node metastasis was similar to that of abdominal and pelvic tumor. The prognosis was related to the optimality of cytoreductive surgery, and the intensity of chemotherapy.