Mucinous borderline tumor mullerian type arising in association with endometriosis

[Loulou50]

I had my right ovary and tube removed via laprascopy and the diagnosis was the tumor was a mucinous borderline tumor mullerian type arising in association with endometriosis.  Epithelial cells were also mentioned.    I was advised to have a complete hysterectomy including removal of my cervix after this diagnosis which I did.  I was told there was only a 25% chance it would recur in my perinium.  I was never referred to an oncologist  and did not have chemotherapy .  Is this tumor usually a cancerous type.  I also had the blood test for ovarian cancer which was negative and after pathology the Dr. told me he was shocked that after pathology findings the test had come back negative.  Could you explain exactly what type of tumor I had and if it was cancerous or not? (I had been in menopause for at least a yr. or longer)

[Annekathryn Goodman, M.D.]

Hi Loulou,
thank you for your question.
Tumors of the ovary are classified in several ways:
-what part of the ovary it comes from (the surface or epithelium, the egg cells or germ cells, the hormone secreting cells that surround the eggs or sexcord stromal cells)
-benign or malignant

You experienced a tumor that originates from the lining of the ovary so the general category of your tumor is an epithelial ovarian tumor.  These tumors are further categorized in 2 ways:

cell type (serous, mucinous, endometriod, clear cell, transitional cell, undifferentiated)

benign, borderline or malignant (invasive cancer)

except for undifferentiated cell type which is only found in an invasive cancer, all other cell types can be seen in tumors that are ether benign, borderline, or malignant (although, I have to say, I have never seen a benign clear cell tumor)

borderline category is a tough one to understand.
borderline tumors can spread or metastasize. These tumors sometimes have metastasis that can grow into new tumors years after the surgical resection of the tumor. In other words, borderline tumors can recur.
Finally ,some women can die from their recurrent, metastatic borderline tumors.
So based on all that, I would put borderline tumors into the malignant category.

The difference between borderline tumors and invasive cancers is rate of growth.Borderline tumors are very slow growing. Most of these tumors are discovered at stage I (no spread off the ovary) and they are cured by surgery.

I would suggest that you egt a second opinion with a gyn oncologist mostly to get the pathology reviewed. It is important to be sure that your tumor did not have any elements of invasive cancer within it.

You have had excellent care and the appropriate surgery.
if there is no disagreeemtn that you had a borderline tumor, you do not need any further therapy. You do not need chemotherapy.

best wishes