Executive Summary of the Ovarian Cancer Evidence Review Conference
Authors: Burke William , Barkley Joel , Barrows Emily , Brooks Rebecca , Gecsi Kimberly , Huber-Keener Kathryn , Jeudy Myrlene , Mei Shirley , O’Hara Julia Sage , Chelmow David 
Published: October 2023

Ovarian cancer has the 17th highest incidence among all cancers in the United States; however, it is the deadliest gynecologic cancer and the fifth most common cause of cancer-related death in women in the United States. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention funded the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) to create educational materials for clinicians on the early diagnosis and prevention of gynecologic cancers.

This article is an evidence summary based on ACOG's extensive literature review on the early diagnosis and prevention of ovarian cancer. An expert panel was recruited from the Society for Academic Specialists in General Obstetrics and Gynecology and the Society of Gynecologic Oncology to review and summarize evidence from articles published between January 2000 and October 2021. Topics used to frame the literature review included the epidemiology of ovarian cancer, risk factors, prevention and risk reduction, screening strategies and early detection, health disparities, diagnosis and care coordination by primary care providers, and special considerations. The Ovarian Cancer Evidence Review Conference occurred in February 2022 where the expert panel and stakeholder professional and patient advocacy organizations discussed their findings and drafted summaries to develop educational materials.

Review of the epidemiology revealed that in 2022 there were 19,880 new cases of ovarian cancer, 12,810 women died of ovarian cancer, 5-year survival is 49.7% and correlates strongly with stage at diagnosis, and fewer than 10% of women with stage 1 disease will have recurrence. Risk factors for ovarian cancer include older age, inactivity, nulliparity, early menarche, late menopause, postmenopausal hormone therapy, genetic mutations such as BRCA1 and BRCA2, and endometriosis. Risk-reducing bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy reduces incidence of ovarian cancer by 80% in BRCA1 and BRCA2 carriers (95% confidence interval, 0.12–0.39) and is recommended by ACOG for women at increased risk of ovarian cancer. Contraception, physical activity, and lactation may help reduce the risk of ovarian cancer. The most common methods studied for screening include transvaginal ultrasonography, bimanual palpation, and measuring tumor marker CA-125. The Risk of Ovarian Cancer Algorithm uses CA-125 and transvaginal ultrasound to estimate the risk of ovarian cancer based on age and change in CA-125; however, it is still being studied, and no established screening method exists for asymptomatic women. Several organizations including ACOG support identifying women at high risk and subsequent genetic counseling. Symptoms of ovarian cancer are nonspecific and include abdominal distention and pain, and while workup should include ultrasonography and CA-125 measurement, no high-quality studies have compared imaging, biomarkers, risk algorithms, or multimodal risk assessment tools for the primary evaluation of patients with high-risk symptoms. Regarding disparities, Black women consistently had worse outcomes compared with their White counterparts, and little evidence regarding other racial and ethnic groups or gender minorities was identified. Finally, care coordination is critical, and ACOG recommends a low bar for referral to a gynecologic oncologist for patients with suspicion of ovarian cancer, which has been shown to increase survival and offer other advantages.

This evidence review identifies many research gaps and opportunities for ovarian cancer and provides a high-level educational summary of current best practices in the risk stratification, diagnosis, and prevention of ovarian cancer.