Surgery

• The first goal of surgery is to stage the ovarian cancer. Then, the surgeon works to remove the cancer from the ovary and as many other sites as possible. This is called debulking. Many surgeons or gynecologists aren't qualified for this type of surgery, so patients should see a gynecologic oncologist. The goal is to leave behind no tumors that are larger than 1 cm in size. Patients with smaller tumors left behind have a much better success rate than those with larger masses still present. While the ovarian cancer is being treated, it's important to note that if the ovaries and/or uterus are removed, the patient will not be able to get pregnant down the road. She will also enter menopause if she hasn't gone through it already. The hospital stay following surgery is usually three to seven days. Normal activities take four to six weeks to resume.
  
  

Chemotherapy

• Chemotherapy is a second form of treatment for ovarian cancer. It involves administering drugs to kill the cancer cells. Usually patients receive the drugs intravenously. They may also receive the drugs through a method called intraperitoneal injection, which means it enters their body in the abdominal cavity, an intramuscular injection or by mouth. A combination of drugs may be used over a three-week treatment period because different drugs affect different phases of the cancer cell cycle. A drawback of chemo is that in addition to killing off cancer cells, the treatment damages normal cells such as red and white blood cells, hair follicles and platelets. This can result in anemia, nausea, diarrhea, vomiting, leukopenia, temporary hair loss or thrombocytopenia, which is bleeding caused by a decrease in platelets.
  
  

Radiation

• Radiation is a less likely form of treating ovarian cancer because many women are diagnosed with late-stage ovarian cancer, which has spread through the abdominal cavity. Radiation uses high energy x-rays to kill cancer cells and must include all the cells within the field. Abdominal organs such as the kidneys, liver and small bowel may not be able to handle the doses of radiation necessary to kill all the tumorous tissue. However, if the cancer is within one or both ovaries and hasn't spread, it's an option. Radiotherapy is either delivered through a radiotherapy device, which is used in a way similar to an x-ray machine, or by injecting a chemical into the peritoneal cavity.