A Review of Principal Studies on the Development and Treatment of Epithelial Ovarian Cancer in the Laying Hen Gallus gallus

Often referred to as the silent killer, ovarian cancer is the most lethal gynecologic malignancy. This disease rarely shows any physical symptoms until late stages and no known biomarkers are available for early detection. Because ovarian cancer is rarely detected early, the physiology behind the initiation, progression, treatment, and prevention of this disease remains largely unclear. Over the past 2 decades, the laying hen has emerged as a model that naturally develops epithelial ovarian cancer that is both pathologically and histologically similar to that of the human form of the disease. Different molecular signatures found in human ovarian cancer have also been identified in chicken ovarian cancer including increased CA125 and elevated E-cadherin expression, among others. Chemoprevention studies conducted in this model have shown that decreased ovulation and inflammation are associated with decreased incidence of ovarian cancer development. The purpose of this article is to review the major studies performed in laying hen model of ovarian cancer and discuss how these studies shape our current understanding of the pathophysiology, prevention, and treatment of epithelial ovarian cancer.