Treatment
There are a number of ways of treating ovarian cancer, and new
approaches are emerging all the time. The way you are treated will
depend on your individual circumstances, but could include surgery,
chemotherapy and radiotherapy. NICE - the National Institute for
Health and Clinical Excellence - is a part of the NHS that produces
guidance on the use of medicines, including the circumstances in
which they should be used. It was set up to ensure that you receive
consistently high quality treatment, wherever you live (England
only).
Treating ovarian cancer
Cancer is a disease in which the mechanisms that ensure that new
cells appear at the same rate that old cells die have broken down.
Cells continue to divide without control leading to a 'population
explosion' of cells in one part of the body. This is what causes
the lump that is the tumour (cancer).
Treatments for ovarian cancer are surgery to remove the tumour
and chemotherapy to kill the cells that are dividing
unnaturally.
Chemotherapy has been used to treat ovarian cancer for many
years. Until recently, platinum based drugs - cisplatin and
carboplatin - have been the drugs most widely used. Tumours usually
respond to this form of treatment but often eventually return.
NICE recommends that another chemotherapy drug paclitaxel
(taxol) with one of these platinum-based drugs (cisplatin or
carboplatin) or one of these platinum-based drugs alone should be
offered as options for first-line (first course) chemotherapy.
The choice of the treatment should be made after discussion
between you and your oncologist (doctor specialising in treating
cancer) about the potential risks and benefits of the two
treatments.
That discussion should cover how effective the treatment is,
side effects, the stage of disease, extent of the surgery and your
general well being.