Ovarian cystectomy in the treatment of apparent early-stage immature teratoma

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the role of ovarian cystectomy in patients with early-stage immature teratoma. METHODS: A retrospective review was undertaken on patients diagnosed pathologically with immature teratoma and with malignant lesions confined to the ovary. Patients were included if they had been treated between January 1997 and December 2015 at the Obstetrics and Gynaecology Hospital of Fudan University, Shanghai, China. Relevant demographic and clinical data were retrieved from the medical records. RESULTS: Forty-three patients were included in the study; 14 underwent ovarian cystectomy (group 1) and 29 underwent unilateral salpingo-oophorectomy (USO; group 2). Three of the patients who underwent USO relapsed and required a second surgical intervention. The 5-year disease-free survival rates were 100% and 88%for groups 1 and 2, respectively. There were no significant differences between the two groups in terms of survival or postoperative fertility outcomes. Univariate and multivariate analysis further revealed that ovarian cystectomy was not a poor prognostic indicator for disease-free survival. CONCLUSION: These current data suggest that ovarian cystectomy can be considered for patients with apparent early-stage immature teratoma as it preserves fertility as much as possible without adversely impacting upon survival.