Ovarian Cancer Can Be Prevented by Fallopian Tube Removal [Study]

Women are urged to have their fallopian tubes removed to prevent ovarian cancer.

Ovarian Cancer Starts in the Fallopian Tubes

There are no reliable screening tests to detect ovarian cancer, and symptoms usually occur when the condition is diagnosed at a very advanced stage. A large clinical trial in Britain discovered that imaging scans and blood tests do not work in detecting ovarian cancer early enough to save lives, The New York Times reported.

Due to this, the Society of Gynecologic Oncology, an organization of doctors who treat gynecologic cancers, recommends making genetic testing more accessible and promoting prophylactic removal of the fallopian tubes to women without genetic risks.

Dr. Stephanie Blank, president of the society, noted that this is still considered an experiment. However, it makes scientific sense. Removing the tubes is not as good as removing the tubes and the ovaries, but it works better than screening, which reportedly doesn't work at all.

Dr. Bill Dahut, chief scientific officer at the American Cancer Society, or A.C.S., echoed the same suggestion. According to him, their data shows that those who had their fallopian tubes removed had lower risks of ovarian cancer,

He added that if one considers biology, it should have been called fallopian cancer because that's where the disease starts.

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Ovarian Cancer Fallopian Tube Removal

Opportunistic salpingectomy (OS) is a procedure for removing fallopian tubes. It can be performed as part of other routine gynecologic surgeries even when one has no known family history of the disease. In this case, countless individuals can avoid getting ovarian cancer.

The procedure is developed as an ovarian cancer prevention strategy by Dr. Dianne Miller of Vancouver Coastal Health's Vancouver General Hospital and BC Cancer in British Columbia, Canada, according to Ovarian Cancer Research Alliance (OCRA).

Miller noted that it's great to cure cancer or improve its outcomes. However, it's better never to get cancer at all. That's why they have such procedures to prevent ovarian cancer.

OCRA's Scientific Advisory Committee member Dr. Celeste Leigh Pearce at the University of Michigan, who co-authored the recent study, noted that the procedure is not targeted to only those who are at high genetic risk of ovarian cancer. They are after the 80% of high-grade serous cancers that arise in people without genetic risks for ovarian cancer to reduce its overall incidence.

The researchers examined 25, 889 individuals from British Columbia who underwent OS between 2008 to 2017 and compared the findings from a control group consisting of 31, 080 British Columbians who had undergone hysterectomy alone or tubal ligation in the same period.

They observed significantly fewer incidences of ovarian cancer among those who underwent prophylactic OS. Senior author Dr. Gillian E. Hanley of The University of British Columbia and the Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute noted that there was no single serous ovarian cancer in the OS group.

The researchers observed 15 serous cancer in the control group, and they expect the number to grow up to 45.1 cases by 2027 based on their calculations.

Hanley added that OS appears to be an effective way to prevent ovarian cancer. They hope the finding will encourage more physicians and patients to consider the removal of fallopian tubes during pelvic surgeries where tubes are accessible.

She added that if their results are correct, the more fallopian tubes removed, the fewer the incidence of ovarian cancer.