Thank you for this wonderful forum!
I am 50 years old and in November of 2003 at age 46, I opted to have an elective oophorectomy because I was post menopausal and had persistent ovarian cyts with a CA 125 of 40. Interestingly, I still had endometriomas despite my post menopausal status. I opted to have a bilateral ooporectomy as a means to try to avoid what ultimately proved inevitable. At the time of my oophorectomy there was no evidence of cancer (three opinions). No post op CA 125 was obtained.
About a 14 months after my oophorectomy I had some bloating and urinary frequency and could palpate a mass in my right lower quadrant. My CA 125 was 48 and I had surgery to remove the 9x14 cm cystic solid mass from my right pelvic sidewall. At the time of my surgery, the thought was that I had peritoneal cancer or had developed ovarian cancer from an ovarian remnent, however Dr Young's (MGH) pathology report read
"almost certainly has arisen in a focus of endometriosis."
Ultimately, the concensus was that I a malignant transformation of endometriosis; stage 1 C, grade three,( poorly differentiated, extensive necrosis with focal areas of carcinosarcoma). I was treated with 6 cycles of Carbo/Taxol (IV) and did very well. It has been 2 1/2 years since my diagnosis and I have continued to do well. My CA125s over the past 2 years have scared me at times, but ultimately, there has been no upward trend ( 4, 6, 7, 6, 7, then different lab, 15,( after breast punch biopsy), one week later, 7 ,then 7 10, 9 ,8 ,10). A recent CT scan showed no evidence of recurrence.
So, my questions follow:
1) I am well aware of the aggressive nature of this particular cancer and poor outcomes of many women with carcinosarcoma, but is it possible that because it occured in a focus of endometriosis I may have a better prognosis?
2) Could you also offer reassurance with respect to my CA125s.