Ultrasound May Better Classify Ovarian Tumors than Preoperative Blood Tests

This gauge, however, can frequently be inaccurate. Another alternative is an ultrasound examination of the tumor. An experienced ultrasound examiner can often effectively classify an ovarian tumor using a method of pattern recognition.

Dirk Timmerman, M.D., Ph.D., from Katholieke Universiteit Leuven (Belgium), and colleagues conducted a prospective study of 1,066 women to compare the ability of these two techniques to distinguish between benign and malignant ovarian tumors. All of the women had an ultrasound examination within 120 days of their surgery to remove the tumor. Of these women, 809 had given blood samples before their surgery, and these samples were later analyzed for CA-125.

The investigators discovered that experienced ultrasound examiners correctly classified 93% of the tumors as benign or malignant, whereas CA-125 levels accurately classified 83% of tumors at best. "We hope our results will encourage responsible parties to expend more effort and more resources to educate and train those who perform gynecologic ultrasound examinations, so that the potential of the ultrasound technique can be maximized,” the authors wrote in their article.


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Katholieke Universiteit Leuven