Ovarian Cancer

When Mac Dunwoody thinks of his late wife, Susan, he doesn’t focus on the ovarian cancer that ultimately took her life. Instead, he remembers the seven wonderful “bonus” years they enjoyed, thanks to MD Anderson and its research programs.

“We didn’t just have seven years of survival. We had almost six years of high-quality life,” Mac says. “I wish we could’ve had more. But when I look back now and realize how much time we had together, even after her diagnosis in 2015, it’s spectacular. In the beginning, we were praying for just six more months.”

Susan’s ovarian cancer symptoms

Susan experienced frequent urination and burping for years, though no one could find any cause for them. But her most severe ovarian cancer symptoms came on quickly, just before her diagnosis.

“Within two weeks of returning from a trip to India, her stomach suddenly inflated,” Mac recalls. “She went from having a flat belly to looking like she was seven months pregnant. And Susan was in incredible shape. She exercised almost every day.”

Susan soon learned from her primary care doctor that she had stage IV ovarian cancer. The bloating was from ascites, or fluid-filled pockets in the abdomen, which can be a telltale sign of late-stage disease. After that, deciding to seek treatment at MD Anderson was easy.

“Susan realized she had two important decisions to make,” Mac says. “First: who to trust to lead her through treatment, and second: whether to live in fear or acceptance. Susan chose MD Anderson and acceptance. And from that day forward, she never looked back. Susan modeled how to turn a cancer diagnosis into something positive.”

Specialized ovarian cancer treatment

Mac and Susan found the expertise they needed in surgical oncologist Larissa Meyer, M.D., who specializes in gynecologic cancers at MD Anderson.

“Dr. Meyer came highly recommended by several different people,” says Mac. “Our own research showed her phenomenal reputation. But once we met with her, we felt really comfortable. Dr. Meyer was our quarterback, and we relied on her 100%. We never could’ve lived the wonderful life we did if we hadn’t had complete confidence in her, and her amazing team.” 

Under Meyer’s supervision, Susan had several initial rounds of chemotherapy to try to shrink the tumors. Meyer then performed a debulking surgery to remove as much of the cancer as possible. Finally, Susan received a series of different chemotherapy combinations to prolong her life.

“Each one worked for about five or six months and then stopped,” Mac recalls. “But every time, Dr. Meyer came up with a new option. Those might sound like small increments, but back-to-back, they really started adding up. We felt very fortunate.” 

Supporting ovarian cancer research in Susan’s honor

One of Susan’s last and most meaningful experiences at MD Anderson was becoming the first patient with ovarian cancer to try a new type of immunotherapy called genetically engineered tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes under gynecologic oncologist Amir Jazaeri, M.D.

“Susan knew the odds were probably pretty small that this treatment would change the ultimate outcome for her,” explains Mac. “But once she understood her doctors could learn from it and that this might be helpful to other people, it gave her a wonderful sense of purpose.” 

Mac and Susan founded The Susan Dunwoody Fund for Ovarian Cancer Research at MD Anderson in 2016, to further support its mission to end cancer. Mac also serves on MD Anderson’s Board of Visitors and is chairing this year’s Sprint for Life 5K run/walk on May 4, which supports ovarian cancer research.

“To make it seven years after a stage IV ovarian cancer diagnosis is really amazing,” Mac says. “Susan and I both realized that the gift of time we got with each other was because of all the people who came 5, 10 or 20 years before her. Through them, doctors kept learning a little more and a little more about ovarian cancer. So, this was our way to express thanks and be a part of it. It’s our turn now.”

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On Feb. 6, 2020, I was diagnosed with stage IIIc ovarian cancer. The abruptness of it all was shocking. In an instant, I was snatched from the warm, comfortable life I’d been enjoying and dunked into the icy cold waters of a nightmare. I felt unable to breathe.

My family doctor, as well as the gynecologist who diagnosed me, seemed equally shocked. Few words were exchanged between us, but their faces spoke volumes. I was convinced there was little hope for me.

That’s why I’m so glad I went to MD Anderson. There, I not only found the immunotherapy clinical trial that ultimately saved my life. I also found an entire team of experts who took charge of my treatment and never gave up. 

My ovarian cancer diagnosis 

I’d thought I was perfectly healthy before my ovarian cancer diagnosis. I didn’t have any ovarian cancer symptoms – just a little pain while urinating. I chalked that up to a UTI and went to my regular doctor for some antibiotics.  

But my doctor said it wasn’t a bladder infection. He sent me off for a CT scan. The next day, he called to tell me the results: I had a mass the size of my fist on my right ovary. Even worse, it looked like it was spreading. He suspected it was ovarian cancer. I needed to contact my gynecologist right away. 

Why I chose MD Anderson for ovarian cancer treatment 

At first, I was convinced that someone had made a mistake. Maybe someone had mixed up my scan with another patient’s.

Unfortunately, my gynecologist confirmed I had cancer. Then, she suggested I go to a nearby hospital system for treatment. That recommendation struck me as odd, considering I live only an hour away from the nation’s #1 cancer hospital. Why wouldn’t she send me straight there? I took that as another depressing sign that she felt there was no hope.  

I went to MD Anderson anyway. I knew that people came from all over the world to be treated there. And, I’m convinced that decision is the reason I’m still alive today. 

I found hope at MD Anderson  

It turned out that MD Anderson had just opened up a brand new facility in The Woodlands, about 15 minutes away from where I live. During my first meeting there with gynecologic oncologist Dr. Lauren Cobb, I remember crying and feeling an overwhelming sense of doom. 

But she and her team turned my entire perspective around within minutes. She hugged me and told me not to worry, that we were going to get through this together. They were all so calm and supportive.

Dr. Cobb’s approach to my disease changed everything. I left my appointment that day feeling full of hope. I was no longer alone. 

My ovarian cancer treatment 

I told Dr. Cobb that if she would be in charge of my disease, I would not attempt to become Dr. Search Engine. I would do my part by focusing only on my spiritual and emotional health. I would be optimistic and do everything asked of me — and I would not give up.

She said that the first part of my treatment would be an 8-hour debulking surgery, to remove as much of the disease as possible. Then I’d undergo multiple rounds of chemotherapy. Eventually, I would join two clinical trials, too. But none of those slowed the cancer down for very long.

Then, Dr. Cobb told me about a new clinical trial led by Dr. Shannon Westin. It was designed for patients with clear cell ovarian cancer; it combined a new immunotherapy drug called etigilimab with an older one called nivolumab. 

I didn’t know much about immunotherapy at the time, but I loved the idea that it was my own body doing the work. It would get help from the drugs, of course, but all the heavy lifting would be done by my immune system. 

What got me past the setbacks

Unfortunately, before I even got my second infusion, my body stopped cooperating. Lab tests showed that my cell counts were too low to continue treatment. I was so fatigued that I could barely walk from one appointment to the next. I felt overwhelmed, defeated and helpless.

But Dr. Shannon Westin and Dr. Amir Jazaeri would not give up. They talked me through all the setbacks, listened to me and gave me hope. They also put everything in motion to build me back up for the next infusion, including multiple blood transfusions and massive amounts of iron. 

By this point, I was starting to think I wasn’t going to make it. I was so sick that I had to be hospitalized twice. I couldn’t walk to the bathroom or even get up by myself. I also couldn’t eat, and felt really uncomfortable, with a bloated belly full of tumors.  

But my blood counts finally rebounded enough that I was able to continue the clinical trial. And, after the third immunotherapy infusion, I started feeling remarkably better. By the eighth infusion, I felt fantastic. Some of my tumors were gone, too, while others were visibly shrinking. I never had any side effects. 

Living well with stage III ovarian cancer 

I am 100% sure I’d be dead right now if I hadn’t gone to MD Anderson. The experimental treatment I got there saved my life. And, the level of care I experienced there is unmatched. I cannot imagine having a better or more personalized treatment anywhere else.

I’ll stay on this clinical trial for another year or so. If the drugs keep working, I hope to continue taking them, even after the trial ends. 

But even if they stop working one day, I’m not worried. I know that my MD Anderson doctors always have something else up their sleeves. And their positive attitude helps me to stay positive. I won’t give up, since I know they’re not going to. 

Request an appointment at MD Anderson online or by calling 1-877-632-6789.

A woman could have her fallopian tubes removed for any number of reasons. Sometimes, it’s necessary to treat an ectopic pregnancy or to resolve an infection caused by pelvic inflammatory disease. In other cases, it’s done as a form of permanent birth control.

But a growing body of evidence suggests that the distal fallopian tube — or flower-shaped section located nearest the ovary — is the site of many cases of high-grade serous ovarian cancer, the most common type of ovarian cancer and one of the most aggressive. 

Research also suggests that an opportunistic salpingectomy — the complete removal of the fallopian tubes during an unrelated pelvic surgery — could help reduce the chances of one day developing ovarian cancer.

So, who should consider having their fallopian tubes removed, and when? And, should anyone who’s finished childbearing seek out the procedure, even if they’re only at average risk of ovarian cancer? We asked Michaela Onstad-Grinsfelder, M.D., a surgeon specializing in gynecologic cancers. 

Why do women typically have their fallopian tubes removed? 

Women don’t usually go in just to have their fallopian tubes removed unless it’s for permanent birth control or to treat an ectopic pregnancy.

Having the fallopian tubes removed is one form of surgical sterilization, or “having your tubes tied.” Until fairly recently, it was more common for surgeons to use a metal clip or a ring to constrict and physically block the tubes, rather than removing the structures themselves.

Why has that changed?

A growing body of data suggests that the fallopian tubes may be the origin of many ovarian cancers. So, a lot of surgeons have changed their practice to remove the fallopian tubes entirely to give patients additional protection against ovarian cancer. 

In the United States, the Society for Gynecologic Oncology and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists both support the removal of fallopian tubes as permanent sterilization for women at average risk for ovarian cancer, but it’s also recommended by professional organizations in Australia, Canada, Germany and New Zealand.

How was this information discovered?

After the BRCA gene was linked to an increased risk for breast and ovarian cancers, doctors started removing the ovaries and fallopian tubes as a type of risk-reduction surgery, once BRCA-positive women were finished with childbearing. 

Most ovarian cancers are diagnosed at stage III or IV, so we don’t usually see the disease in its earliest stages. But what we noticed when we started performing these surgeries is that there were often pre-cancerous lesions present in the fallopian tubes. 

This was a really exciting discovery because, before that, we hadn’t known there was a lesion that could one day become ovarian cancer. So, we were able to start finding ovarian cancers really early that we hadn’t been able to catch before.

How did that discovery lead to the recommendation of opportunistic salpingectomies?

There was a lot of excitement in the medical community at that point about the possibility of reducing the risk of ovarian cancer by removing the fallopian tubes during hysterectomies or when patients were having their “tubes tied.” Before that, whenever someone had a hysterectomy, we would normally only take out their fallopian tubes if we were also taking out their ovaries.

But as the new data emerged, there was an increased interest in removing the fallopian tubes along with the uterus when performing hysterectomies. Because if a woman is pre-menopausal, her ovaries might still be benefitting her. But once she’s finished childbearing, the fallopian tubes serve no real purpose.

So, who should consider having their fallopian tubes removed? 

People who are at increased risk of developing ovarian cancer, such as those who carry the BRCA genetic mutation, are recommended to have a stand-alone surgery to remove fallopian tubes with both ovaries (called a risk-reducing salpingo-oophorectomy).

Otherwise, it’s only recommended as an opportunistic salpingectomy: something to be done when you’re already having another type of gynecologic procedure, such as a hysterectomy.

Are any related clinical trials available?

We have a clinical trial going on right now for BRCA-positive women who are done with childbearing but are not quite ready to have their ovaries removed. 

In this clinical trial, participants will have their fallopian tubes removed now, but delay the removal of their ovaries until later (between the ages of 35 and 45 for patients with BRCA1 and between the ages of 40 and 50 for those with BRCA2). The goal is to determine if it may be safe to delay the removal of both ovaries for women at high risk of developing ovarian cancer.

Do you ever foresee a time in which an opportunistic salpingectomy could be combined with another procedure, such as an appendectomy or a hernia repair?

Right now, we don’t typically bundle other types of surgeries with the removal of fallopian tubes. That’s partially because only OB-GYNs are specifically trained in that procedure. 

But we’re actively looking for ways to team up with other surgeons to offer this service together. It could be an exciting strategy in the future to further reduce patients’ risk of ovarian cancer.

Request an appointment at MD Anderson online or by calling 1-877-632-6789.