Lymph node removal does not improve survival in ovarian cancer

Reported by Susan Aldridge, PhD, medical journalist

A comparison shows that removal of the lymph nodes does not improve the five year survival rate of women with advanced ovarian cancer.
Only around 30 per cent of women who have advanced ovarian cancer can expect to survive for more than five years after their diagnosis. There has been some evidence that removal of local lymph nodes as part of the treatment might help improve survival.

Doctors in Rome carried out a comparison with 427 patients who were assigned either to removal of the tumor and lymph glands or removal of the tumor only. Five year progression-free survival rates were higher among those who had lymph nodes removed - 31 per cent compared to 22 per cent for those who did not have their lymph nodes taken out.

However, overall survival rates were not altered by removal of the lymph nodes. So, while quality of life may be improved by removing lymph nodes, this is not an approach that can increase the chance of survival.

Source
Journal of the National Cancer Institute 20th April 2005