Abstract
Metastatic tumors account for up to 15 % of ovarian malignancies in western countries and may present a significant diagnostic challenge during intraoperative frozen section consultation. The primary site is most commonly located in the gastrointestinal tract, with approximately 30 % of cases originating from the colon, followed by appendiceal, gastric, and pancreatobiliary primaries. Among non-gastrointestinal primaries, breast cancer is the most frequent source of ovarian metastases, which may also be an incidental finding in prophylactic or therapeutic oophorectomy specimens. Metastatic endometrial and cervical carcinomas to the ovary occur at a lower frequency and generally have less severe implications on the intraoperative management at the time of frozen section compared to other metastatic sites. While comprehensive surgical staging is typically performed for primary ovarian malignancies, gynecologic staging surgery is unnecessary for extragenital primary tumors metastatic to the ovary. Intraoperative frozen section evaluation plays a critical role in this distinction and therefore guides the extent of surgery.
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Hui, P., Buza, N. (2015). Metastatic Tumors of Ovary. In: Atlas of Intraoperative Frozen Section Diagnosis in Gynecologic Pathology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-21807-6_12
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-21807-6_12
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