Ovarian cancer patients are more hypermetabolic than cervical cancer patients. The Harris-Benedict equation for females is a unreliable estimate of caloric expenditure in patients with cervical or ovarian cancer receiving specialized nutritional support.
The patient did not have any constitutional symptoms or current concerns. She denied having bone pain, cough, or shortness of breath. Review of systems was otherwise negative in detail. Her surgical history was negative for abdominal surgery. Abdominal examination revealed a diffuse, mildly tender, distended abdomen with hypoactive bowel sounds. The remainder of her physical examination revealed a mottled, dimpled right breast with nipple retraction and a large 5.0-cm palpable mass. No palpable axillary lymphadenopathy was appreciated. Additional evaluation in the emergency department included an abdominal computed tomographic scan with oral and intravenous contrast (Figure 1). The patient was admitted for conservative treatment with nasogastric tube decompression. Bilateral mammography and sonography were obtained. Breast mammography demonstrated a band of thickening with fibrotic changes and calcifications. The results of the breast
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