Guidelines and selection criteria for secondary cytoreductive surgery in patients with recurrent, platinum-sensitive epithelial ovarian carcinoma.

Background: The benefit of cytoreductive surgery for patients with recurrent epithelial ovarian cancer has not been defined clearly. The objective of this study was to identify prognostic factors for survival in patients who underwent secondary cytoreduction for recurrent, platinum-sensitive epithelial ovarian cancer and to establish generally applicable guidelines and selection criteria.

Methods: The authors reviewed all patients who underwent secondary cytoreduction for recurrent epithelial ovarian cancer from 1987 to 2001.