Ovarian cancer

Question 1

What is Ca 125?

Answer 1

Ca 125 is a biomarker for epithelial ovarian cancer
it is an antigen that is derived from both coelomic and mulllerian epithelium

Question 2

What is the sensitivity and specificity of Ca 125 in its use as a detector of ovarian cancer?

Answer 2

78% sensitivity and specificity
This is considered to be low

Question 3

What are the rules of a good screening test/programme?

Answer 3

WHO ‘Wilson and Jungner principles’
(1) The condition sought should be an important health problem.
(2) There should be an accepted treatment for patients with recognized disease.
(3) Facilities for diagnosis and treatment should be available.
(4) There should be a recognizable latent or early symptomatic stage.
(5) There should be a suitable test or examination.
(6) The test should be acceptable to the population.
(7) The natural history of the condition, including development from latent to declared disease, should be adequately understood.
(8) There should be an agreed policy on whom to treat as patients.
(9) The cost of case-finding (including diagnosis and treatment of patients diagnosed) should be economically balanced in relation to possible expenditure on medical care as a whole.
(10) Case-finding should be a continuing process and not a ‘once and for all’ project.

Question 4

What are the standard chemotherapy agents used for the treatment of EOC?

Answer 4

Combination of platinum and taxane therapy:
- Carboplatin
- Paclitaxel