Ovarian Cancer Patients Fare Better At Comprehensive Cancer Centers, SGO Reports

A study of 144,449 patients from the National Cancer Data Base: A Project from The Society of Gynecologic Oncologists (SGO) Quality and Outcomes Committee, shows that adherence with the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) guidelines offers a significant survival benefit for patients.

The objective of the committee’s study was to assess the influence of adhering to NCCN guidelines for the management of patients diagnosed with invasive epithelial ovarian carcinoma on:

• frequency of adherent care from 1998-2007
• factors associated with adherent care
• five-year survival

Findings were presented at the SGO 2011 Annual Meeting on Women’s Cancer, which showed that: only 50 percent of individuals treated for ovarian cancer are treated in conjunction with the NCCN guidelines; median survival is improved at high-volume centers (more than 26 cases a year); and patients treated at a comprehensive cancer center have a significant survival advantage.

Washington University faculty serving on the SGO Quality and Outcomes Committee are senior author David Mutch, MD and first author Matthew Powell, MD. Data were analyzed by the Washington University statistical team of J. Philip Miller and Noor Al-Hammadi.