Epithelial Ovarian Cancer Patients and Clinicopathological Features and Survival: A Comparison of Outcomes of Two Age Cohorts in Bangladesh

Abstract

Objective: This study compared the clinicopathologic characteristics and overall survival of epithelial ovarian carcinoma in women younger versus older than 45 years in Bangladesh. Methods: A retrospective analysis identified 129 epithelial ovarian carcinoma patients who were admitted to the National Institute of Cancer Research and Hospital, in Dhaka, Bangladesh from 2016 through 2017 for surgery. These patients were grouped into two categories: the younger group (≤45 years) and the older group (>45 years). Clinicopathological features of epithelial ovarian carcinoma were analyzed in each age group. Cox proportional hazards model identified factors affecting survival and Kaplan-Meier survival curves with log rank test compared outcomes for each age group. Results: The median age of the 129 women was 46 years (IQR: 38, 56) and median time of follow-up was 9 months (inter-quartile range: 4, 26.5). We found a significant difference in the CA-125 level (p < 0.044), age of menopause (p < 0.001), follow-up duration (p < 0.016), disease outcome (p < 0.005) and histopathological type (p < 0.021) between the two groups. No significant differences were found in breakdown of Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics (FIGO) stage of the disease. There was a significant difference in overall survival between the patients of two groups (p = 0.021) where there was a higher probability of death among the older cohort. The 5-year overall survival rates for the younger age versus older group were 34.0%, and 11.7% respectively. Independent prognostic factors by univariate analysis for the overall survival were age, FIGO stage, preoperative CA-125 and CEA level. However, when controlling for stage, survival was similar between age cohorts. Conclusions: Our data suggests that women in Bangla-