Opportunistic salpingectomy during hysterectomy for prevention of ovarian cancer: A review of literature

Abstract

© 2018, Medical Association of Thailand. All rights reserved. Today, ovarian cancer is one of the most common cause of cancer related death among women and there is no effective screening test. Therefore, prevention is considered to be the best measure in reducing the incidence of ovarian cancer. Several studies suggest that ovarian cancer is derived from the fimbrial end of the fallopian tube. Thus, an increase in understanding of pathogenesis of epithelial ovarian cancer offers new preventive measures such as the bilateral salpingectomy. This procedure is easily done simultaneously with hysterectomy. However, most gynecologists usually perform hysterectomy, leaving both fallopian tubes. These patients could gain the benefit of ovarian cancer prevention if salpingectomy was performed at the same time. The authors propose this article to reveal advantages and disadvantages of opportunistic salpingectomy during hysterectomy in preventing ovarian cancer.