Ovarian tumors in childhood

Solid malignancies in children and adolescents

The cure rate in childhood cancer has improved markedly during the past 20 years. In the 1960s the cure rate was about 20 to 30 per cent, but today more than 50 per cent of children and adolescents with cancer are being cured. This improvement is principally due to multidisciplinary teamwork in diagnosing, staging, and treating children with cancer; newer and more chemotherapeutic agents; and a recognition that combination therapy consisting of surgery, radiotherapy, and chemotherapy is frequently indicated.

Management of immature teratoma of the ovary in children by conservative resection and chemotherapy

Six patients with immature teratoma of the ovary were treated with surgery and chemotherapy. Surgical management consisted of unilateral salpingo-oophorectomy, biopsy and conservation of the contralateral ovary, and biopsy of peritoneal implants. Triple-agent chemotherapy with vincristine, actinomycin D, and cyclophosphamide was given to four patients and appeared to be beneficial. Radiation therapy was not employed. Local resection of teratomatous recurrences was frequently necessary. Thorough sampling of this tumor is mandatory for establishment of an exact pathologic diagnosis. All six patients are surviving in good health at 1-8-yr follow-up. The prognosis of immature teratoma in the child or adolescent appears more favorable than previously appreciated.