Abstract
Background: Frozen section (FS) has a valuable role in the diagnosis of ovarian tumors. It is considered a pivotal point in guiding the surgical therapy, particularly in premenopausal women. In postmenopausal women, it may be required as well to avoid unnecessary surgical staging in benign ovarian tumors. Aim: This study aims to evaluate the accuracy of intraoperative frozen section in ovarian neoplasms in postmenopausal women. Materials and Methods: A retrospective analysis was done for intraoperative FS for suspected ovarian neoplasms. The study was conducted in Oncology Center, Mansoura University from March 2008 to December 2014. The frozen and paraffin section reports were compared, and overall accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values were determined. Results: The study included 105 patients and the overall accuracy of FS in determining malignancy was 81.7%. The sensitivity for malignant tumors was 75.32% with specificity of 100%. For benign tumors, the sensitivity and specificity were 100% and 93%, respectively. Borderline tumors had the lowest sensitivity of 100% with specificity of 95.19%. Conclusion: The present study concurs that frozen section is an accurate test for diagnosis of benign and malignant tumors in postmenopausal women thus determining the extent of surgery done for them. On the other hand, accuracy rates for borderline tumors are low.
Highlights
It is not easy to diagnose ovarian malignancy preoperatively due to avoiding of performing a preoperative biopsy for fear of capsule rupture and tumor spillage [1]
In case of postmenopausal patients with ovarian cancer, sparing fertility is not the issue of importance but the surgical staging procedure will change according to the histopathology, for malignant ovarian tumors’ complete surgical staging should be performed including omentectomy, lymphadenectomy, peritoneal biopsies and sometimes appendectomy which has got an impact on the operative time as well as morbidity and even mortality in old women
Rational of using frozen section is to select the appropriate management according to the staging of the tumor if benign oophorectomy and if borderline or malignant: panhystrectomy, omentectomy, iliac, para-aortic lymphadenectomy, peritonectomy and even appendectomy
Summary
It is not easy to diagnose ovarian malignancy preoperatively due to avoiding of performing a preoperative biopsy for fear of capsule rupture and tumor spillage [1]. In case of postmenopausal patients with ovarian cancer, sparing fertility is not the issue of importance but the surgical staging procedure will change according to the histopathology, for malignant ovarian tumors’ complete surgical staging should be performed including omentectomy, lymphadenectomy, peritoneal biopsies and sometimes appendectomy which has got an impact on the operative time as well as morbidity and even mortality in old women. This can be avoided if we have an accurate histological diagnosis of a benign ovarian tumor pre- or intraoperative. Accuracy rates for borderline tumors are low
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
