Grandulosia Tumor

[fltattjfk]

Had surgey last Wed to remove right ovary.. tumor 5cm. Report came back granulosa cancer. Does anyone know anything about this type  ovarian cancer?. Not to much info out there. Help

[ChrisP2236]

I was diagnosed with granulosa cell tumor 3/06.  You are right, information is scarce as it's so rare.  A lot depends on your staging, the size of your tumor and your mitotic rate (rate at which the cancer cells were dividing).  There is a very good article on the internet, Granulosa-Theca Cell Tumors by Chad Michener MD on eMedicine.  Also the ovca.net website has a graulosa cell tumor thread on their discussion board and those ladies are very helpful.  

Typically it is a slower growing tumor with a history of later recurrance, so you must be checked for the rest of your life as it has been known to recur as much as 30 years after diagnosis. I have quarterly pelvic exams and annual CT scans.  If they only took your ovary, a complete hysterectomy is usually recommended as part of the follow up unless you are young and want to have more children.  During this procedure they will biopsy surrounding areas and do pelvic washes to check for spillage/spread of the disease.

Did the path report assign a stage? I was 1c because my gyn did a lap surgery to remove the ovary and cut it up to remove it (morcellated it).  I was fortunate because she thought it might be malignant and so she bagged it (the gyn/onc she was consulting with wanted to wait to do the surgery as he thought my cyst might "resolve itself). It is known to sometimes recur in the other ovary, and also can cause endometrial cancer if not caught early.

If you are an early stage and low grade it is entirely possible they will not recommend chemo - chemo is designed for aggressive cancer cells and these cells usually are indolent and chemo is not always as effective in fighting them so they wait for a recurrance to use it. The cells seem to get more aggressive with recurrances.  If you have not been referred to one already, it is imperative that you see a gyn/oncologist - they are specially trained to treat gynecological cancers.  Make sure that the gyn/onc you see has treated gct before - it's rare and some gyn/oncs haven't seen it.  There is still the occasional dr who thinks it's not "really" cancer so beware of that too.  It IS cancer and it needs to be treated by someone who is familiar with it.  

If you have specific questions I'll be glad to try to help you.  Best wishes, Chris P

[fltattjfk]

Thank you for writing back. Yes I am at a gyn/onc he did the surgey. I had it at Johns Hopkins so I think I am in good hands. I will see my doctor next Tuesday the 29 with some more procedures to be done. A sample of the cervic and uterus... My tumor crack when he was removing it.  He  washed the area and he said everhing looked clean. Time will tell. My doctor is the head of Ovarian Cancer at Hopkins, but I am still going to ask him if he call this cancer and how many case he see of this. Althought I fill it is rare that not to many. Thank you for all the nfo. Has yours cme back at all???Linda

[ChrisP2236]

It sounds like you are stage 1C since the tumor ruptured but everything else looked clean?  I have not had a recurrance to date.  I had a small tumor - 2cmX1.25cm and the cancer cells were very slow growing.  It was felt it was a very early lesion and my prognosis should be good.  I will still have follow-up for the rest of my life to be safe.  It sounds like you are in good hands with your gyn/onc.  You could post to the ovca.net (ovarian cancer network) discussion board on the granulosa cell tumor thread and ask if any of those women have been treated at Johns Hopkins and see if any have had your dr. If they have, I'm sure they'd probably share their experiences with you. Let us know how your follow-up goes and I'm here if you need someone who's been there. Good luck, Linda. Chris  

[fltattjfk]

Thanks , I will.. I think I am in good hands, I am not at the local coummity hopital. It realy surprise me at how many people do not good to the best, but what ever.. I will be in touch to let you know how everthing goes. Thanks again. Linda  Also yes I think he said I was 1c   low grade cancer but I will ask about how fast the cell were going.