When ovarian cancer gets diagnosed, the doctor will immediately recommend treatment that suits the overall health of the patient. Ideally, the treatment is typically based on the staging of cancer which would further decide the treatment plan and thereby the multidisciplinary approach is accordingly set. Essentially the first line of treatment is surgery which is again conditioned to the patient’s current health condition and the ability to deal with the side and after-effects.
Also one needs to understand that most of the symptoms in ovarian cancer are on a subtle level and most of the cases are diagnosed in the advanced stage. Also if you are seeking treatment, you must primarily look for a cancer center or a women’s cancer center. A good multidisciplinary treatment center will give you access to surgeons, oncologists, radiologists, nurses and many other specialized doctors to help you walk through the entire treatment plan. You can also go through the overview ovarian cancer for better understanding.
The following is an overview of the treatment process and options for ovarian cancer.:
1. Surgery
As far as treatments are concerned, Surgery is the foremost wherein a piece of mass is removed to look for any cancer signs. This is otherwise called a biopsy and helps to understand which stage the cancer is currently. Once confirmed, the tumor is easy to remove, yet it all depends on how far the cancerous cells have spread and what’s the current health condition. In some cases, along with the ovaries, cervix, fallopian tubes, and uterus may also be removed.
Additionally, this treatment may also require the lymph nodes to be removed. This is ideally conducted in stage 1 and could be followed by chemotherapy in case the condition is really bad. In case you are yet to have children and are still young, the doctor may remove one ovary and one fallopian tube to remove the cancerous tumor. This will help keep the reproductive process in place.
2. Chemotherapy
Chemotherapy is another widespread treatment in any kind of cancer and that is essentially used to remove the cancer cells and prevent them from spreading. This treatment is administered in almost all stages of cancer and ideally used to help remove the tumor. This might be directly injected into the abdomen which could help to come in direct contact with cancer affected part of the body.
3. Radiation therapy
Radiation therapy is also another effective line treatment used to kill the cancer cells in the pelvic region and to prevent cancer to come back and help relieve any pain symptoms. Since ovaries are delicate organs, this therapy is conducted by a team of radiation oncologists. Targeted therapy uses new medications to kill the cancer cells without damaging the surrounding tissues. Hormone therapy is another mode of treatment that is widely used to treat ovarian cancer but not epithelial ovarian cancer. In recent days, clinical trials have become the new mode of treatment yet condition to what the doctor suggests.
4. Alternative therapies
Additionally, many complementary therapies are also being used along with conventional medicines in recent times such as acupuncture, herbal medicines, massage, meditation, stress reduction therapies and many more to treat ovarian cancer. To prevent the relapse of ovarian cancer, one must stay positive and keep the body healthy with clean lifestyle habits and a balanced diet. .
