Brain metastases from epithelial ovarian carcinoma: Evaluation of prognosis and managements - A Taiwanese Gynecologic Oncology Group (TGOG) Study

Objective. To evaluate the characteristics and outcome of patients with brain metastases from epithelial ovarian carcinoma. Methods. The clinical and pathologic characteristics, treatment and outcome of patients with brain metastases from epithelial ovarian carcinoma were analyzed from eight medical centers in Taiwan under the TGOG (Taiwanese Gynecologic Oncology Group). Results. A total of 64 patients were recruited in this study. The incidence of brain metastases from epithelial ovarian carcinoma seemed to be increasing in recent years. The median survival from the diagnosis of brain metastases was 8 months (range: 0-72). Prior cancer relapse before the diagnosis of brain metastases, number of brain metastases and multimodal treatment were related to the duration of survival. Conclusions. The prognosis for patients with brain metastases from epithelial ovarian carcinoma is generally poor. However, clinicians should keep alert to the neurological complaints of ovarian cancer patients and the patients might benefit from aggressive multimodal treatments. (C) 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.