Ovarian cancer - a disease that any woman can get

Ovarian cancer is one of the most common female reproductive cancers, second only to cervical cancer. This disease develops silently with unclear symptoms, so it is often overlooked by women. Most cases appear at menopause, but the disease can also occur at a younger age in any woman.

Ms. NT T, 47 years old, from Nghi Phu, Vinh City, discovered she had a large uterine fibroid 2 years ago and was scheduled for surgery. At that time, because she had no symptoms, Ms. T. subjectively did not have surgery and self-treated with functional foods and medicines.

Recently, when the tumor grew larger and larger, accompanied by symptoms of lower abdominal pain, Ms. T. decided to go to Vinh International Hospital for a medical examination. Through clinical examination and ultrasound results of the uterus and ovaries, the doctors diagnosed: Large uterine fibroid 68 x 60 mm in size and indicated a complete laparoscopic hysterectomy.

Image of the team of doctors at Vinh International Hospital performing surgery on a patient with uterine fibroids. Photo: Kim Chung

When the laparoscopic surgeon explored the entire abdominal cavity of the patient, he observed a uterus as large as a 4-month fetus, 2 large ovaries measuring 50 x 60 mm, moderate amount of ascites, abdominal wall peritoneum, stomach, intestines with reactive lymph nodes, and hard infiltration of the greater omentum throughout, suspicious of metastatic ovarian cancer.

Image of patient's abnormally large ovaries. Photo: Kim Chung

After explaining the patient's condition to the family, the surgeon performed an open surgery to remove the entire uterus, two adnexa, two ovaries, and the greater omentum to prevent recurrence and metastasis to distant organs in the body and cause secondary cancer in those organs of the patient.

The patient's tissue was sent for pathological examination to re-evaluate the diagnosis. Pathological results confirmed that the patient had bilateral ovarian Krukenberg tumors, accompanied by poorly differentiated adenocarcinoma invading the uterine muscle.

After 90 minutes of surgery, the patient was conscious and was receiving recovery care at the Hospital's Obstetrics and Gynecology Department. After 5 days of recovery care, Ms. T was discharged from the hospital and was advised by doctors on post-discharge care and treatment methods.

Through the case of patient NT T, doctors recommend that everyone should pay attention to their health, because some diseases can develop silently, without obvious signs, and subjective psychology reduces the chance of more effective treatment.

Therefore, women should have regular gynecological examinations every 6 months as an effective measure to screen for potential risks early; this is important in protecting the health of themselves and their families./.