Sequelae of lateral ovarian transposition in unirradiated cervical cancer patients

The sequelae of lateral ovarian transposition (LOT) in cervical cancer patients has been examined only in the light of the effect of pelvic radiation therapy on ovarian preservation. Preservation of ovarian function has not been examined in the absence of radiation therapy, and symptomatic ovarian cyst formation in transposed ovaries with the need for subsequent surgery has not been addressed in either radiated or unirradiated cervical cancer patients. We studied 84 premenopausal FIGO stage IA or IB cervical cancer patients treated by primary radical hysterectomy between the years 1978 and 1988. None of these patients received adjuvant radiation therapy. Fifty-nine of eight-four patients had radical hysterectomy (RH) without LOT. These patients were compared to 25 of 84 patients who had LOT in addition to RH. The incidence of symptomatic ovarian cysts, the majority requiring operative intervention, was 24% in the ovarian transposition patients as compared to 7.4% in those who had RH alone. This threefold increase in symptomatic benign ovarian cyst formation in the translocated ovary was significant (P = .048). On the other hand, LOT in these RH patients does not appear to increase the incidence of early menopause (P greater than 0.05). On follow-up of those patients who did not incur additional surgery or radiation, 4.3% became menopausal, as compared to 4.1% of those patients undergoing RH alone, with the mean ages of the two groups being comparable.