Areas to improve quality of life after ovarian tumor surgery and adjuvant treatment

Abstract

Background/Aim: To evaluate quality of life (QoL) in women treated for ovarian tumors one year after laparotomy. Patients and Methods: The validated quality of life questionnaires (EORTC QLQ-C30 and QLQ-OV28) were sent to women who had undergone laparotomy due to ovarian tumors 12 months after surgery. The answers were analyzed and grouped according to the ovarian tumor histology (benign, borderline and cancer). Results: A total of 621 patients (87.5% out of 710) agreed to participate in the study. Ovarian cancer patients experienced statistically worse QoL one year after laparotomy in several analyzed parameters, including financial difficulties, compared to patients treated for benign and borderline tumors. Conclusion: Women with ovarian cancer still need further cancer rehabilitation and support one year after diagnosis to improve their QoL. The novel finding was that ovarian cancer patients suffered from financial difficulties even in a free of charge health care system.