Stage 3 Clear Cell Carcinoma

[beyondthesea]

My mom is 80 and had a complete hysterectomy three weeks ago with a diagnosis of Grage 3-4, Stage 3 Clear Cell OVCA. Her lymph nodes, omentum, uterus, right ovary, and washings were all removed and were clear, but her left ovary had perforated her bowel. The margins where they resectioned her bowel are also clear. So, it sounds to me as if the only malignancy was the ovary itself and the portion of bowel that was taken out. My question is, if the lymphs and surrounding tissues are clear and she has been optimally debulked, what is her prognosis with and without chemo? We won't see an oncologist for a few weeks while she's recovering from surgery, and I can't seem to find consistent info on clear cell, except that it's very rare. Some info says the prognosis is very bad, and others say it responds better to chemo. (???) At her age (she's in excellent health otherwise), what are the chances of metastasis and how soon? I'm wondering if it's 100% sure there would still be cancer cells inside of her that will spread. I hate to see her suffer through chemo to supposedly gain time, if it probably wouldn't come back anyway. I have her path report if I'm not explaining things well and you have any other questions. Thanks so much for being here! -Chris

[Annekathryn Goodman, M.D.]

Dear Chris,
Thank you for your clear information. It sounds like your mother had an ovarian cancer that spread off the ovary and directly into the bowel. I assume the portion of intestine was located right next to the ovary from your description. That is wonderful that the remainder of the organs that were removed did not show any signs of spread.

I understand your concern about chemotherapy. Chemotherapy can be tough. The standard of care for a person who has experienced a cancer like your mother

[beyondthesea]

Oops...sorry for the typo....that should obviously be GRADE 3-4, not grage. Silly me. :-)