Surgical Innovation Cuts Ovarian Cancer Risk by 80%

Ovarian cancer remains the deadliest gynecological cancer, largely because there is no reliable screening test, and most cases are diagnosed at advanced stages. Thousands of patients die each year as treatment options are limited once the disease has spread. Researchers identified that most aggressive ovarian cancers actually originate in the fallopian tubes, not the ovaries. A prevention strategy built around this discovery has now shown a major reduction in cancer risk when applied during routine surgery.

The strategy, developed by researchers at the University of British Columbia (Vancouver, BC, Canada), in collaboration with provincial cancer and health systems, involves opportunistic salpingectomy, where the fallopian tubes are removed during procedures such as hysterectomy or tubal ligation. The ovaries are left intact, preserving hormone production and avoiding early menopause. British Columbia became the first region worldwide to formally implement this approach in routine care in 2010.

The prevention method was designed after researchers established that high-grade serous ovarian cancer begins in the fallopian tubes. Removing the tubes during surgeries patients are already undergoing adds minimal operative time and has no meaningful long-term side effects. Earlier studies confirmed that the approach is safe, cost-effective, and does not affect the timing of menopause. The new research aimed to quantify how much cancer risk reduction this strategy actually provides.

The population-based study analyzed health data from more than 85,000 people who underwent gynecological surgery in British Columbia between 2008 and 2020. Cancer outcomes were compared between those who received opportunistic salpingectomy and those who did not. Individuals who had the procedure were 78 percent less likely to develop serous ovarian cancer. The findings were published in JAMA Network Open and validated using international pathology data.

The results provide the strongest evidence to date that opportunistic salpingectomy prevents the most lethal form of ovarian cancer. Adoption of the strategy has already reached about 80 percent of eligible surgeries in British Columbia. Medical organizations in more than 20 countries now recommend the procedure as a prevention strategy. Researchers believe wider global adoption could prevent thousands of ovarian cancer cases each year and are exploring expanding its use to other abdominal surgeries.

“This study clearly demonstrates that removing the fallopian tubes as an add-on during routine surgery can help prevent the most lethal type of ovarian cancer,” said co-senior author Dr. Gillian Hanley, an associate professor of obstetrics and gynecology at UBC. “It shows how this relatively simple change in surgical practice can have a profound and life-saving impact.”

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University of British Columbia