Surgery and prognosis in stage III epithelial ovarian cancer.

The results of this retrospective case study indicate that a composite of tumor grade, pattern of spread and substage at the time of opening affects the outcome most in the treatment of stage III epithelial tumors of the ovary. The poorest prognosis was associated with grade 3 histology, a pattern of spread requiring extensive and often difficult surgery for removal and a high substage. The best prognosis was usually associated with grade 1, with either very easily removed, isolated spread or low substage. The extent of tumor defined the degree of primary cytoreduction possible. If the tumor was minimally extensive, primary cytoreduction results were excellent. The same conclusions were reached in the case of secondary cytoreduction at the time of second-look procedure. There was no statistically significant difference (z = 1.481, P = 0.069) in 5-year survival between patients with microscopic only disease (59%) at second-look, and patients with gross disease not cytoreduced (36%).

Invasive cervical cancer following cryotherapy for cervical intraepithelial neoplasia or human papillomavirus infection.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the following: 1) the causes for the failure of cervical cryotherapy to prevent cervical cancer, and 2) whether cervical cryotherapy is associated with the development of cervical adenocarcinoma rather than squamous carcinoma. METHODS: We reviewed the medical charts of 327 women with cervical cancer. One hundred forty-seven for whom pertinent history was missing were contacted by telephone or at clinic visits. History obtained verbally was confirmed by outside medical records. Cervical biopsies (N = 16) and endocervical curettages (ECCs) (N = 15) performed before cryotherapy and biopsies at the diagnosis of cancer (N = 21) were reviewed. RESULTS: Twenty-one women with cervical cancer had a history of cryotherapy for cervical intraepithelial neoplasia (CIN) or human papillomavirus infection (HPV). The interval between cryotherapy and cancer was more than 2 years in 19 and more than 5 years in ten. Several categories of pre-treatment errors were identified. Evaluation before cryotherapy was appropriate in only nine cases. Interpretive errors were noted in three of 16 cervical biopsies and ten of 15 ECCs. After cryotherapy, 12% of women had appropriate follow-up. Of the invasive cancers that developed, 24% in the cryotherapy group and 21% in the non-cryotherapy group were adenocarcinomas. CONCLUSIONS: Careful evaluation before cryotherapy, accurate pathology reports, and consistent long-term follow-up are necessary if cryotherapy is to be used to treat CIN or HPV. We found no evidence that cryotherapy is associated with the development of cervical adenocarcinoma.

A randomized trial of three methods of obtaining Papanicolaou smears.

The relationship between technique of obtaining Papanicolaou smears, presence of endocervical cells, and rate of cervical neoplasia was studied by comparing an endocervical and ectocervical nylon brush (Bayne brush), Ayre spatula plus endocervical brush, and spatula plus cotton-tipped swab in a randomized, prospective trial involving 11,061 patients. Eligible patients had a cervix and were not pregnant. Clinic records of patients with abnormal cytology were reviewed to determine the pathologic diagnosis. Whether pathology was defined as including condyloma, dysplasia, and cancer; dysplasia and cancer; moderate dysplasia, severe dysplasia, and cancer; or just severe dysplasia and cancer, no significant difference was found in the rates of pathology between the three techniques. Endocervical cells were identified in 89.5% of smears obtained with the Bayne brush, in 91.5% with the spatula plus endocervical brush, and in 71.1% with the spatula plus cotton-tipped swab (P less than .001). Among smears obtained with the spatula plus swab, the rate of any pathology was higher in smears that contained endocervical cells than in smears in which endocervical cells were absent (2.0 versus 0.6%; P = .009). After correction for the influence of age, there remained predictive value with the presence of endocervical cells. Once corrected for the influence of age, the rate of pathology and abnormal cytology in smears obtained with the spatula plus brush or the Bayne brush was not dependent upon the presence of endocervical cells.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Presentation of cervical cancer.

To determine how patients with invasive cervical cancer present and whether presentation affects disease-free survival (DFS), a review of 81 patients treated for cervical cancer by the Division of Gynecologic Oncology and Pelvic Surgery at the Southern California Permanente Medical Group between January 1, 1986, and December 31, 1986, was performed. Fifty-six percent of patients presented with abnormal vaginal bleeding, twenty-eight percent presented with abnormal Papanicolaou (Pap) smears, nine percent presented with pain, four percent presented with vaginal discharge, and four percent presented with other symptoms. Follow-up was 24 to 41 months. Patients presenting with abnormal Pap smears had DFS of 96%. Those presenting with abnormal vaginal bleeding had DFS of 51% and those presenting with pain had DFS of 29%. Presentation strongly influences DFS (chi 2 = 16.8, P less than 0.001). Of women presenting with abnormal Pap smears, 87% were Stage I and 13% were Stage II. Of women presenting with other than abnormal Pap smears, 40% were Stage I, 34% were Stage II, and 26% were Stage III or IV. Presentation with abnormal Pap smear and stage are significantly related (chi 2 = 14.8, P less than 0.001). Of women presenting with abnormal Pap smears, 89% had cancers 0 to 2 cm, 5% had cancers 2.1 to 4 cm, and 5% had cancers greater than 4 cm in diameter. Of women presenting with other than abnormal Pap smears, 21% had cancers 0 to 2 cm, 26% had cancers 2.1 to 4 cm, and 53% had cancers greater than 4 cm in diameter. Presentation with abnormal Pap smear is significantly associated with tumor size (chi 2 = 25.4, P less than 0.001).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Combined vesicovaginal-ureterovaginal fistulas associated with a vaginal foreign body.

A case is presented of vesicovaginal-ureterovaginal fistulas associated with a neglected vaginal foreign body. The patient complained of a foul-smelling vaginal discharge and was found to have a 4-cm hard vaginal mass on examination. Urinary incontinence developed subsequently. Examination under anesthesia was performed, and an aerosol deodorant cap was operatively removed from her posterior vagina/perirectal space. Subsequent work-up demonstrated the presence of both a vesicovaginal fistula and a right ureterovaginal fistula. The patient underwent a combined vaginal repair of the vesicovaginal fistula and abdominal ureteroneocystostomy. The frequency, types, etiology, and treatment of genitourinary fistulas are reviewed with particular attention to those associated with a vaginal foreign body.

Second-look procedures in ovarian cancer patients receiving six vs. nine courses of platinum, adriamycin, cytoxan (PAC) chemotherapy: the SCPMG experience 1982-1985.

From July 1, 1982, through December 31, 1985, 100 patients with Stage I, II, or III ovarian cancer, who were clinically NED following primary chemotherapy, underwent second look laparotomy. A prospective, nonrandomized study was set up among the various institutions within the Southern California Kaiser Permanente Medical Group. Those patients being treated at the Tertiary Oncology center received six courses of PAC while patients treated at other centers received nine courses of PAC. There was no selection as to severity of disease. Patients with Stage IV disease were not subjected to second-look procedures. Twenty patients with Stage I disease received other than PAC chemotherapy. Eighty patients with Stage II and III disease received PAC chemotherapy; 39 had six courses and 41, nine courses or more of PAC. Standard second-look procedure was performed and the status of the second-look procedure was the determining factor of response. Eighteen of the 39 patients (46%) who received six courses and 26 of 41 patients (63%) who received nine courses of chemotherapy had negative second-look procedures. Sixty-five patients had Stage III ovarian cancer, 34 with six courses of therapy and 31 with nine courses of therapy. There was no statistical difference in the incidence of positive or negative second-look procedures between the groups. The therapeutic index of six courses of PAC chemotherapy was in our hands, higher than with nine courses, since there was no observed difference in the status of the second-look and there was significantly more toxicity with the nine courses of therapy.

A new technique for closed thoracostomy insertion of chest tube.

A new technique for percutaneous closed thoracostomy insertion of a chest tube is now available. It appears to be a more comfortable one for the operator and the patient. With widespread use, it is expected to improve the effectiveness and reduce the morbidity and mortality rates resulting from chest tube insertions.

Fallopian tube adenocarcinoma: common extraperitoneal recurrence.

Fallopian tube adenocarcinoma is a rare gynecologic tumor that spreads like epithelial ovarian carcinoma. From 1954 to 1982, thirty patients with tubal adenocarcinomas were treated at UCLA and by the Southern California Permanente Medical Group. The mean age was 52 years. Pain, irregular or postmenopausal bleeding, and vaginal discharge were the most common presenting symptoms. Twenty-two had undergone previous pelvic or abdominal surgery. A pelvic mass was the most common physical finding, while Pap smears, IVP, and BE were rarely helpful in making the diagnosis or planning treatment. All of the patients in this report underwent primary therapeutic surgery. Nineteen patients received radiation and fourteen, systemic chemotherapy. Surgical stage was prognostic for survival. Fourteen patients with Stage I and II disease are NED (4 at 2 years; 10 at 5 years). No patients with Stage III or IV disease survived 5 years. Recurrences were noted as late as 6 years after primary therapy and 10 of 14 recurrent sites were extraperitoneal.

A pilot study of lorazepam-induced amnesia with cis-platinum-containing chemotherapy.

Eighteen patients with advanced epithelial ovarian cancer were given 36 courses of cis-platinum-containing chemotherapy at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. Patients were given lorazepam (Ativan) prior to chemotherapy. Amnesia for the day of chemotherapy was reported in 29 courses. Lack of recall for the chemotherapy infusion and the subsequent 8 hr or greater was reported in 33 of the 36 courses. In two courses, no amnesia effects were noted. No serious side effects of lorazepam therapy occurred and all patients believed that the amnesic effect was beneficial during chemotherapy. Lorazepam (Ativan) appears to be a safe medication to induce amnesia for cis-platinum chemotherapy and deserves further study to determine its effect on anticipatory vomiting, nausea and vomiting, and patient compliance with continued chemotherapy.