Complications from intraperitoneal radioactive phosphorus in ovarian malignancies

A retrospective study of the use of phosphorus-32 in the treatment of 73 cases of ovarian malignancy to evaluate the safety and morbidity is presented. The surgically confirmed major complication rate with P-32 alone was 4 of 54 cases (7.4%). The addition of external radiation raised the surgically confirmed complication rate to 4 of 19 cases (21%) and with the addition of those diagnosed and treated only medically the rate rose to 8 of 19 cases (42%). In Stage I cases, Grades 1 and 2, there was only 1 death in 26 patients (96%), whereas for Grade 3 tumors only 6 of 12 patients (50%) were living at the end of 2 years.