If you have ovarian cancer, your outcomes will be better if you are treated by a gynecologic oncologist right from the beginning.
Fred Hutch Cancer Center has more gynecologic oncologists than any other medical center or clinic in the Pacific Northwest. They treat all types of gynecologic cancer, including cervical, endometrial, ovarian, and vulvar cancers, uterine sarcoma and gestational trophoblastic disease.
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Referrals are required for new patients. Please request your primary care provider or specialist fax all relevant medical information to the fax number listed below.
Where You're Treated First Matters Most
The most important decision a person with cancer will make is deciding where to get treated. Studies have shown that patients who begin their treatment at a top regional cancer center, like Fred Hutch, have better outcomes than those who start their treatment elsewhere. And here’s why:
- Expert care: Fred Hutch physicians treat only cancer and specialize in specific cancer types, such as gynecologic cancer. They have a deep understanding of their specialty since they diagnose and treat thousands of cancer cases every year. This experience builds their expertise that makes better outcomes possible.
- Newest treatments: Physicians at Fred Hutch have access to all the latest developments and research in treating cancer. Your care comes from combined expertise of Fred Hutch and UW Medicine. Newsweek ran an article that explores the difference between getting treated at a top cancer center and a local community hospital. The disparity in outcomes, in many cases, can be quite striking.
When your treatment is complete, we'll keep close watch on your health through our Women’s Wellness Clinic where we provide wellness-focused follow-up care focused on cancer treatment recovery.
Learn About Ovarian Cancer
Ovarian cancer usually begins on the surface of the ovary, the organ that produces eggs and female hormones.
There are several different types of ovarian cancer, named for the cells in the ovary where the cancer begins — epithelial, germ cell, and stromal cell. The majority of ovarian cancers are epithelial carcinoma, which begins on the surface of the ovary.
Treatment for Ovarian Cancer
Ovarian cancer is a serious disease, but a number of new and better drugs have become available for the treatment of this cancer over the past few years. In addition, we have new and more effective drugs to help control the side effects of cancer-fighting chemotherapy drugs.
If you have been diagnosed with ovarian cancer, you will want to know what your treatment options are.
Ovarian Cancer Care Team
At Fred Hutch, you receive care from a team of providers with extensive experience in your disease. Your team includes physicians, a patient care coordinator, a registered nurse, an advanced practice provider and others, based on your needs. You also have access to experts like registered dieticians, social workers, acupuncturists, psychiatrists and more who specialize in supporting people with cancer or blood disorders.
What to Expect
People who have received a diagnosis of ovarian cancer will be seen at the University of Washington Medical Center, where you may also have follow-up and/or chemotherapy/radiation treatments, if necessary. Your physician or patient care coordinator will clarify the location where you will receive your care.
Follow-Up After Treatment
At Fred Hutch, we follow our patients for as long as they choose. Typically, you will come for checkups every three months for the first two years after your treatment for ovarian cancer. People who reach the two-year mark without having a recurrence of their disease are less likely ever to have a recurrence and can be seen less often. From that point, we usually ask you to come in every six months for a checkup until five years have passed. After five years, an annual checkup is all that is recommended.
Our patients say that they find it reassuring to see the same doctors who treated them — experts in gynecologic cancers — for their follow-up visits.
Prevention
The Breast and Ovarian Cancer Prevention (BOCP) Clinic at Fred Hutch is for people with a very strong risk for breast cancer or ovarian cancer.
At this clinic, we provide a personalized approach to cancer risk assessment, prevention, and screening, including an evaluation and a discussion of your individual breast and ovarian cancer risk.
Latest Treatments and Clinical Trials
Fred Hutch was formed, in part, to bring promising new treatments to patients faster. For ovarian cancer patients, this means more treatment options at Fred Hutch than you might find elsewhere, including the chance to participate in one of many ongoing clinical trials conducted at Fred Hutch and UW Medicine.
Many patients at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center receive promising therapies by taking part in clinical trials. These research studies are done by physician-scientists from Fred Hutch and UW Medicine. They test new treatments or new ways to use current treatments.
Every advance in cancer treatment in recent years has come out of clinical trials. We offer more active clinical trials than anywhere else, which means more treatment options for patients like you.
For some people, taking part in a clinical study may be the best treatment choice. Access to clinical studies by researchers at both Fred Hutch and UW Medicine is one reason many patients come to us for care.
