Patterns of care for women with ovarian cancer in the United States.

PURPOSE: To characterize treatments for ovarian cancer, to determine if recommended staging and treatment were provided, and to determine factors that influence receipt of recommended staging and treatment. METHODS: A total of 785 women diagnosed with ovarian cancer in 1991 were selected from the National Cancer Institute (NCI) Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) program. Type and receipt of recommended staging and treatment were examined using data on surgery and physician-verified chemotherapy. RESULTS: Most women with presumptive stage I and II ovarian cancer were treated with surgery alone (58%), while women with stage III or IV disease were treated with surgery plus platinum-based chemotherapy (75% stage III, 56% stage IV). Approximately 10% of women with presumptive stage I and II, 71% with stage III, and 53% with stage IV disease received recommended staging and treatment. The absence of lymphadenectomy and assignment of histologic grade were the primary reasons women with presumptive stage I and II cancer did not receive recommended staging and treatment, whereas for stages III and IV, it was due to older women not receiving surgery plus platinum-based adjuvant chemotherapy. Age, stage, comorbidity, "other" race/ethnicity, and treatment at a facility with an approved residency training program were associated with whether recommended staging and therapy were received. CONCLUSION: Older women with late-stage disease did not receive recommended treatment. The majority of women with early-stage disease did not receive recommended staging and treatment.