Transitional cell carcinoma of the ovary

Transitional cell carcinoma (TCC) of the ovary is a rare, recently recognized, subtype of ovarian surface epithelial cancer. We present a case of TCC of the ovary, managed by staging operation and followed by postoperative chemotherapy with carboplatin and cyclophosphamide.

A 67-year-old postmenopausal woman presented with a 2-year history of progressive enlargement of an abdominal mass. Pelvic sonography and abdominal computed tomography showed a pelvic mass measuring 210 x 165 x 203 mm. The serum CA-125 titer was also elevated (65.01 U/mL). A staging operation with total abdominal hysterectomy, bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy, infracolic omentectomy and pelvic lymph node dissection was performed. After surgery, the pathologic report of the left ovarian tumor was TCC, grade 2-3, stage IA. The patient then underwent four cycles of postoperative chemotherapy with carboplatin and cyclophosphamide. CA-125 levels declined to within the normal range after the first cycle of chemotherapy.

TCC of the ovary is a rare subtype of epithelial ovarian cancer. It differs from malignant Brenner tumor by the absence of a benign or borderline Brenner component. Surgical resection is the primary therapeutic approach, and patient outcomes after chemotherapy are better than for other types of common epithelial ovarian cancers.