Scientist reveal key factor to beat ovarian cancer

Ovarian cancer is one of the most common forms of cancer, a type that usually remains undiagnosed for a while in many individuals.

However, a lesser-known fact is that ovarian cancer often forms secondary tumors, especially in a certain tissue in the abdominal cavity known as the omentum, which connects the stomach to other abdominal organs.

Researchers from the University of Basel and University Hospital Basel have investigated what happens when the cancer “hijacks” this cavity.

Ovarian cancer often goes undetected for a long time. In seven out of 10 patients, the tumor has already formed secondary tumors in the abdominal cavity at the time of diagnosis.

“In advanced ovarian cancer, the question arises as to whether, in addition to the visible tumors and metastases, the omentum should also be completely removed as a preventive measure in order to reduce the recurrence of tumors,” explains Dr. Francis Jacob from the Department of Biomedicine at the University of Basel and the University Hospital Basel.

To answer this question, the team led by Jacob and Professor Viola Heinzelmann-Schwarz analyzed 36 tissue samples from 15 patients, taken from different parts of the omentum.

Some of the samples came from ovarian cancer patients who already had secondary tumors in this organ, while some of the samples came from patients whose omentum was cancer-free but were suffering from other types of cancer.

The researchers analyzed precisely which cells were present in the samples and created a cell atlas of the omentum in a diseased and a healthy state.

The results indicated that the healthy omentum has a balanced cell composition, which means that the same cells are present in equal quantities at all the sites that were checked.

In the case of ovarian cancer patients, however, it was found that the cancer transforms the omentum into an environment that favors the spread of tumors.

“A key finding is that even tissue far from the tumor undergoes changes in its composition and already contains individual tumor cells. When cancer cells migrate into the omentum, they hijack the entire organ,” explains Jacob.

The findings in this study could be a major leap in treating ovarian cancer and avoid recurrence by treating the omentum as well.