A study of 656 patients with "early" ovarian cancer

Six hundred fifty-six patients with epithelial ovarian cancer that had been totally excised macroscopically were analyzed with the intention of providing information for a prospective randomized trial of adjuvant therapy. No deaths occurred in patients with tumors of borderline malignancy or those with stage Ia(i) well-differentiated tumors and hence adjuvant therapy was not justified in these patients. Survival of patients with clear cell carcinoma was poor, irrespective of stage. No statistically significant difference was found between the various modalities of adjuvant treatment, but those patients who had no further treatment after primary surgery had a significantly better survival. No obvious factors were found to account for this result. It is concluded that a "no adjuvant treatment" group must be included in any prospective study.