Mei is a 67-year-old patient who recently underwent an exploratory laparotomy, total abdominal hysterectomy, bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy, omentectomy, and tumor debulking. Her surgical specimens were sent for pathology review and germline biomarker testing. Based on the findings, Mei was diagnosed with stage IIIC, high-grade serous epithelial ovarian cancer with a BRCA1 pathogenic germline variant.

An eight-week online symptom self-management program, which can be facilitated by a nurse, significantly improves symptom burden, sense of control, and quality of life among patients with ovarian cancer. Researchers reported the evidence in the Journal of Clinical Oncology.

Using the National Institutes of Health Symptom Science Model and Nursing Science Precision Health Model helps oncology nurses to recognize symptoms more promptly in patients with ovarian cancer and provide precision interventions that address racial disparities and foster equity in symptom-focused, patient-centered care, Mahoney and Pierce reported in the October 2022 issue of the Clinical Journal of Oncology Nursing.

An optical imaging agent shown to improve diagnostic accuracy, pafolacianine (Cytalux^TM) was approved on November 29, 2021, for use in adult patients with known or suspected ovarian cancer as adjunct therapy in conjunction with planned intraoperative identification of malignant lesions. Pafolacianine is used in combination with a near-infrared (NIR) fluorescence imaging system that requires specialized training provided by the device manufacturer.

During the last month of life, non-White patients are more likely to receive aggressive care with little to no focus on palliative or end-of-life (EOL) care for their ovarian cancer, researchers reported in Cancer.

Only 4%–9% of patients with ovarian or cervical cancer use palliative care, but the numbers are much lower for Hispanic and Asian women than for non-Hispanic White women, according to researchers’ findings reported in Data in Brief.

The miR-181a microRNA may turn off two genes and lead to the development of high-grade serous ovarian cancer, researchers reported in Nature Communications. The finding is significant because not much is known about how ovarian cancer develops and it’s difficult to detect in its earlier stages.

On May 8, 2020, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) expanded the indication of olaparib (Lynparza^®) to include its combination with bevacizumab for first-line maintenance treatment of adult patients with advanced epithelial ovarian, fallopian tube, or primary peritoneal cancer who are in complete or partial response to first-line, platinum-based chemotherapy and whose cancer is associated with homologous recombination deficiency (HRD)–positive status defined by either a deleterious or suspected deleterious BRCA mutation or genomic instability.

On April 29, 2020, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved niraparib (Zejula^®) for the maintenance treatment of adult patients with advanced epithelial ovarian, fallopian tube, or primary peritoneal cancer who are in a complete or partial response to first-line platinum-based chemotherapy. 

Niraparib was approved in October 2019 for patients with homologous recombination deficiency (HRD)-positive advanced ovarian, fallopian tube, or primary peritoneal cancer. 

Even though its incidence is less common, ovarian cancer is the fifth leading cause of death from cancer in women, according to the American Cancer Society. It also estimated more than 22,000 new cases of ovarian cancer in 2019, with a five-year survival of 47% for all stages.

Eighteen months after completing surgical debulking and chemotherapy for stage III high-grade serous ovarian cancer, 56-year-old Lily experienced a rising CA-125 level. At her oncologist’s recommendation, Lily started an aromatase inhibitor, but it did not stop the rising tumor marker. After she began experiencing symptoms of bloating and mild abdominal pain, Lily and her oncologist decided to proceed with second-line chemotherapy. As she left the office, Lily remarked that she did not complete genetic testing when she was originally diagnosed because she does not have any children or a family history of ovarian cancer and she was concerned that her insurance would not cover the testing.

Researchers have found that use of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) after diagnosis appears to improve survival for patients with epithelial ovarian cancer. The study results were published in Lancet Oncology.

Although all cancers have a genetic basis, a subset result from an inherited (i.e., germline) mutation that puts a person at increased risk for certain cancers. Unfortunately, the signs of hereditary cancer are often overlooked or misunderstood. Here’s what oncology nurses need to know about BRCA mutations, one of the more common mutations you’ll see in practice.

On April 6, 2018, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved rucaparib, a poly ADP-ribose polymerase inhibitor, for the maintenance treatment of recurrent epithelial ovarian, fallopian tube, or primary peritoneal cancer who are in a complete or partial response to platinum-based chemotherapy.

On August 17, 2017, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration granted regular approval to olaparib tablets for the maintenance treatment of adult patients with recurrent epithelial ovarian, fallopian tube, or primary peritoneal cancer, who are in a complete or partial response to platinum-based chemotherapy.

On March 27, 2017, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved niraparib, a poly ADP-ribose polymerase (PARP) inhibitor, for the maintenance treatment of adult patients with recurrent epithelial ovarian, fallopian tube, or primary peritoneal cancer who are in complete or partial response to platinum-based chemotherapy.