New test may boost accuracy of ovarian cancer diagnosis

Photo courtesy of BMJ – Dr. P. Marazzi

CANCER DIGEST – Oct. 17, 2014 – A new test to help doctors diagnose ovarian tumors and choose the most appropriate treatment is ready for clinical use, researchers say.

In a study published today in the British Medical Journal, an international team led by Imperial College London and KU Leuven, Belgium describe the new test, called ADNEX, which can discriminate between benign and malignant tumors, and identify different types of malignant tumor, with a high level of accuracy.

The test is based on the patient's clinical information, a simple blood test and features that can be identified on an ultrasound scan. The authors of the study say doctors could start using ADNEX right away.

The researchers developed the test using data from 3,506 patients from 10 European countries diagnosed between 1999 and 2007, looking at which information available before the operation could be used to predict the diagnosis. They then tested the model on an additional 2,403 patients between 2009 and 2012.

Existing prediction models discriminate between benign and malignant tumors but lack accuracy and don't sub-classify malignant tumors. The ADNEX model can discriminate between benign, borderline, stage I invasive, stage II to IV invasive, and secondary metastatic tumors.

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