Cytoreductive surgery in the management of ovarian cancer

The standard management for previously untreated advanced-stage epithelial ovarian cancer is optimum cytoreductive surgery followed by aggressive cytotoxic chemotherapy. This approach is based on a retrospective review of a single-institution experience published more than 30 years ago and has yet to be confirmed in a prospective randomized trial. Many subsequent studies have supported the observation that advanced ovarian cancer patients who have the longest survival invariably have no macroscopic disease left at the completion of the initial surgery. The combination of a platinum- and taxane-based chemotherapy regimen is now well established as the most active one for treating women with advanced ovarian cancer. However, the overwhelming majority of patients with advanced ovarian cancer will eventually experience disease recurrence and develop resistance to cytotoxic chemotherapy. Selected patients with recurrent ovarian cancer--ie, those with an isolated recurrence identified more than 6 months following completion of initial chemotherapy and who have an excellent performance status--are managed with cytoreductive surgery followed by a platinum-based regimen. As in previously untreated patients, patients who have no macroscopic residual tumor left after secondary debulking for recurrent ovarian cancer have a significantly better survival than those left with any gross tumor. This article will review the role of surgery in the initial management of advanced-stage and recurrent ovarian cancer, focusing on the definition of optimum surgical cytoreduction.