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Getting the right care

In the bewildering time of diagnosis, there are many things to consider. For many families the first priority is ensuring that they are accessing the best of medical care.

Cancer treatment in the United Kingdom has changed considerably in the last 10 years. There are some variations across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, however the general principles below apply across the UK.

Upon suspicion of ovarian cancer women are referred to a specialist Gynaecological Oncology team. The team is multi-disciplinary (MDT) - that is to say it is made up of surgeons, physicians, radiologists, pathologists and specialists nurses, all of whom have a particular interest or skills in ovarian cancer. The MDT will be based in a regional centre, but members may travel to local hospitals to provide care or run clinics.

The team will review your particular circumstances and following discussions will make recommendations for how the cancer should be treated. They will also consider clinical trials that are running in their area and whether you would be suitable to join. Following these deliberations you will be offered some choices for your treatment, along with their recommendations.

All MDTs operate under the guidance of national guidelines/protocols. If you would like to learn more about these please see below:

Ovarian cancer care in England, Wales and Northern Ireland

Cancer care in England is provided by cancer networks.

The treatments they provide are governed by several institutions and documents.

The National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE) issues guidance which governs which treatments are available for use by the NHS. It has appraised treatment for first line chemotherapy and treatment for relapsed disease. Summaries of their guidance can be found in the links here. Please be warned that they do contain full statistics so we ask you to pause and consider whether you wish to proceed. Ovacome staff are very happy to discuss these documents with you should you wish.

• 1st line treatment
• Treatment for relapse

NICE is currently reviewing its recommendations for the treatment and care of women from the point of diagnosis until relapse. Ovacome is actively involved with this process and will be keeping members up to date via our website and newsletter. If you wish to contribute to the process please ensure you are a member of Ovacome and have let us know on your registration form that you are happy to receive surveys from us.

Ovarian cancer care in Scotland

http://www.sign.ac.uk/guidelines/fulltext/75/index.html